Romano's early All-Star Game exit a cause for concern for Blue Jays

SEATTLE – Shed of all the pomp surrounding the circumstances at all-star week, the Midsummer Classic is, at its best, both a celebration of, and a mirror on, the sport. Nine innings, featuring the very best players in the midst of elite seasons, in a showcase that’s as close to the real thing as any of the four major North American leagues gets in this type of spectacle. If you want a sense of what Major League Baseball has to offer, you’ll get one here.

And the 93rd All-Star Game provided quite a glimpse, from leaping catches by the outfield walls from Adolis Garcia and Randy Arozarena right out the chute, to sizzling velocity from triple-digit monster Camilo Doval on down, to Mariners fans chanting “Come to Seattle” during each of Shohei Ohtani’s two plate appearances and “Ju-li-o” when Julio Rodriguez stepped up, to the raw power of Yandy Diaz ripping a ball over the wall, to the situational baseball in which Bo Bichette cashed in a go-ahead run with a sixth-inning sac fly.

The American League couldn’t hold that advantage, however, Colorado Rockies catcher Elias Diaz taking Felix Bautista deep in the eighth inning and Craig Kimbrel striking out Jose Ramirez with two on for the final out of a 3-2 National League victory.

“There were a lot of exciting players out there, which was cool to see. Young players, too,” said Bichette. “But I think the coolest part was how much the crowd was behind Julio Rodriguez. That was awesome to see, so I’m glad I experienced it.”

For the Toronto Blue Jays, an opportunity to fully revel in the limelight quickly turned into a cause for concern when closer Jordan Romano came out of the game in the seventh inning with left lower back tightness. He said he initially felt the tightness on his last pitch of the bullpen, immediately thought, ‘Are you kidding me?’ and then headed for the mound, thinking it would loosen up a bit.

“The thing is, you really want to pitch, right? All-Star Game. First time getting in there,” said Romano. “But I was thinking we have we have the real season to prepare for, I didn't want to push through it and make it a real serious issue.”

He retired Will Smith on a weak fly ball to open the inning, but made the call on the mound to come out after former teammate Lourdes Gurriel Jr. launched a flat slider to left, a drive that appeared to be foul but ruled fair.

During the replay review that eventually overturned the call, Romano was tended to by Los Angeles Angels trainer Mike Frostad, a Calgary native and former Blue Jays assistant, before walking off the mound.

“My head was kind of spinning a little because I was like, ‘Oh man, I don't know if I can keep going here.’ There was a lot going on,” Romano said. “(Gurriel) put a good swing on it, but I was glad it was foul. That was it regardless there.”

Michael Lorenzen took over and finished out the inning, getting an apology from Romano in the post-game clubhouse for being rushed into mop-up duty.

Romano nearly immediately connected with Blue Jays training staff and planned to meet with them Wednesday once he returns to Toronto. The exit was part of an eventful night for the club’s four all-star representatives.

Whit Merrifield opened the eighth with a base hit before Brent Rooker lined to third, leading to a double play. Vladimir Guerrero Jr., fresh off his Home Run Derby win, made a throwing error in the sixth, flung his bat into the third-base camera well swinging atop an Alexis Diaz heater before grounding out in the bottom half, and the struck out in the ninth against Kimbrel. And aside from his sac fly, Bichette also put a tag down at second to catch Luis Arraez stealing in the fourth.

“I was satisfied,” Bichette said of his 320-foot drive to the track in right that plated Salvador Perez. “I want to win the game, so I knew I had to get a run in and I got it in. But I also knew that I could have hit it better.”

The tight and entertaining game before a crowd of 47,159 at T-Mobile Park was played in 3:03, including Lorenzen’s warm-up time behind Romano and featuring the brisk pace that’s been a hallmark of the 2023 season thanks to a series of rule changes, highlighted by the pitch timer.

Commissioner Rob Manfred, speaking to members of the Baseball Writers’ Association of America earlier in the day, heralded the benefits of the timer along with a ban on infield shifts, limits pitcher disengagements and batters’ timeouts, and larger bases, saying they’ve “been great for us.”

Union head Tony Clark, also addressing the BBWAA, wasn’t quite as positive, praising the quick adjustment his players had made while mentioning that “there are still some concerns there, particularly as it relates to September and October once we lead into and up through the playoffs.”

He suggested players would continue raising a slow down of the timer through the on-field rules committee, saying, “I don't think that an extra few seconds here and there is going to create a 3½, four-hour game unless it's just a slugfest and it turns into what would otherwise be a long game anyway.”

Later, he added, “when you are trained as a pitcher or a hitter to be able to execute, slow things down, yeah there's actually a big difference when you have the extra two or three seconds.”

Manfred was wary of adapting the timer for the post-season, saying, “I do in general, like the idea of playing everything under a single set of rules,” added that he remained “open-minded” but also mentioned that “we are comfortable with the way the clock and the violations, particularly late in the game, in high-leverage situations that we're watching, have been managed.”

There were no issues late in this one, with no violations called as Bautista got into trouble and got tagged by Elias Diaz, as Pablo Lopez worked through the top of the ninth and as Kimbrel grinded through a ninth in which he issued two-out walks to Kyle Tucker and Rodriguez, the crowd chanting his name the entire time, before getting Ramirez swinging, ending the National League’s nine-game losing streak.

“It was really exciting when Rodriguez got in the game, came to the plate, the drama in the ninth inning with the walk,” said NL manager Rob Thomson, the native of Corunna, Ont., who along with third-base umpire Stu Scheurwater of Regina put more Canadian fingerprints on the contest. “I thought the crowd was great.”

Added AL manager Dusty Baker: “There was a lot of pride out there and a lot of competitiveness out there. You could tell by the energy on both sides and the energy in the ballpark. That was probably one of the better All-Star Games that I've been a part of.”

Reflective, perhaps, of a season trending that way, too.