San Francisco Giants: Potential Replacements if Romo Needs DL Time

The San Francisco Giants might need to place Sergio Romo on the disabled list, but they have options to replace him.

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The San Francisco Giants suffered through a tough loss on Wednesday at the hands of the Colorado Rockies, but the worse news came after the game. The Giants sent relief pitcher Sergio Romo, one of the three remaining “Core Four” bullpen members, was sent back to San Francisco in the midst of this six-game road trip to have his sore right elbow examined.

There’s no word yet on if Romo will need time on the disabled list to recover, or even what the extent of the soreness in his elbow is, so the idea that the team will even need a replacement for Romo at this point is nothing but pure speculation.

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The Giants are two games deep in a stretch of 33 games in 34 days, and have plenty of question marks still surrounding the team’s starting rotation. If Romo does need time on the shelf, conventional wisdom would say that the Giants bring up another reliever to keep an eight-man bullpen during this potentially daunting stretch of games.

Maybe the most obvious choice for promotion would be right-hander Mike Broadway, who is currently in Triple-A. The 29-year-old pitcher made his big league debut last season after spending 11 years toiling in the minor leagues, and while he hasn’t great overall, he showed some strong stuff that would make him an option should the Giants need to fill a spot in the bullpen.

With a hard fastball and nasty slider, the 6’5″ Broadway could make his return to the Giants and eat innings during this long stretch. He isn’t the only option, however.

Another funky right-hander that could fill the hole left by Romo is Derek Law. After nearly breaking camp on the opening day roster with the Giants in 2014, Law underwent Tommy John Surgery that year, and made his return in the middle of last year. 2015 was an up-and-down year for Law, but he came into big league camp this year in good shape, and pitched well again. But with a full bullpen for the Giants, there wasn’t any room for him with the team no matter how well he threw the ball.

Now with a spot potentially opening in the bullpen, Law could receive an opportunity to show whether his weird delivery and great stuff play in the major leagues. He’s pitched well in the very young Triple-A season, allowing two baserunners and no runs in three outings. Promoting him now might be a little early, but the team might want to see what they have in this youngster.

Another option, which looks appealing from the outset, is bringing up another long reliever. Clayton Blackburn was scratched from his scheduled start on Monday because of a stomach bug (it’s even affecting the minor leaguers), but the Giants could bring him up while his arm is still fresh. Blackburn has mostly been a starter through his minor league career, but spent some time as a swingman on the Sacramento staff last season while various Giants’ starters rehabbed in Triple-A.

Of course, there’s the chance the Giants go with a surprising choice and bring up a fifth bench player. Having someone like Jarrett Parker, who can change a game with one swing of the bat, on the bench is a very nice luxury for any team.

Next: Giants Begin Long Stretch in April and May

Again, the team might not even need to make a move. But if they do, there are a lot of choices that they can make.