The start of the 2025 MLB season has been wild, to say the least. The New York Yankees took the league by storm over the first weekend of the regular season with their torpedo bat usage only to slow down exponentially ever since. Several players have signed extensions including Vladimir Guerrero Jr., previously one of the best upcoming free agents.
Team-wise, the Los Angeles Angels are tied for the best record in the American League. The Atlanta Braves are the third-worst team in the majors record-wise. Somehow, the Miami Marlins have a better record than the Houston Astros as of this writing. These early-season oddities are bound to sort themselves out eventually, but they're fun for now nonetheless.
Bob Nightengale of USA Today added more fuel to the early-season fire with a slew of interesting MLB rumors in his weekly column. Here are the most important ones for your consumption.
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MLB Rumors: Phillies have reason to fear they made a massive mistake involving Jordan Romano
Fresh off a wildly disappointing postseason exit, the Philadelphia Phillies revamped the back end of their bullpen. This change of approach made some sense considering how badly the bullpen struggled in the NLDS against the New York Mets, but the Phillies essentially replaced Jeff Hoffman and Carlos Estevez with Jordan Romano and Joe Ross. So far, that risk has not paid off.
This was a risky move even with Hoffman and Estevez's struggles in October because of Romano in particular. Romano was once a dominant closer for the Toronto Blue Jays, but he missed most of last season due to elbow inflammation and struggled mightily in the 15 appearances he was able to make for the team. The Phillies hoped he'd be healthy and back to his old form this season, but so far, that has not been the case.
Romano has made seven appearances for Philadelphia and has allowed seven runs in six innings of work (10.50 ERA) and has become a popular punching bag among Phillies fans. Given his early-season struggles, Nightengale is reporting that the Phillies are concerned with the right-hander for one particular reason.
"The Phillies have become concerned with closer Jordan Romano, who averaged 96.8-mph on his fastball two years ago, but now is down to about 92-94-mph and struggling holding on runners. This helps explain why the Blue Jays non-tendered him last winter before the Phillies signed him to a one-year, $8.5 million contract."
Romano struggling would be one thing, but as Nightengale notes, his fastball velocity is way down. As a result, the opposition is currently hitting .333 against that pitch. For context, in 2023 when Romano was an All-Star, the opposition hit .222 against his four-team fastball according to Baseball Savant - a 100-point difference. Without a good fastball, Romano becomes a one-pitch pitcher, making him easy to hit. The Phillies hope that Romano can turn it around, but considering how well Hoffman and Estevez have pitched so far, it's hard not to be discouraged.
MLB Rumors: Dodgers being ultra-conservative with Shohei Ohtani
The biggest reason that Shohei Ohtani received a $700 million deal from the Los Angeles Dodgers in the 2023 offseason is because he can hit and pitch at an elite level, something nobody in the history of the game has really done. Dodgers fans have yet to see him do both in Dodger Blue. That didn't matter in 2024 as Ohtani won the NL MVP award and the Dodgers won the World Series, but that's not stopping Ohtani from pursuing a return to the mound. Nightengale revealed the latest when it comes to a return timeline for Ohtani as a pitcher.
"If the Los Angeles Dodgers actually needed him, Shohei Ohtani could step on the mound right now and contribute, according to a person close to Ohtani, but his return is looking like it may come closer to the All-Star break."
This is interesting. Nightengale reveals that Ohtani is healthy and could contribute as a pitcher if the Dodgers actually needed him to right now. He also says that his return could be closer to July's All-Star break. The Dodgers are being ultra-conservative with Ohtani, and it's really hard to blame them.
Would Ohtani on the mound make them better? Of course. When healthy, he has a Cy Young ceiling, which is absurd considering all he can do at the plate. The Dodgers, especially now, could use him on the mound considering their bevy of pitching injuries.
Still, it makes little sense for the Dodgers to waste bullets from Ohtani's right arm in April. This is a team trying to repeat as World Series champions, and because Ohtani is coming off a major injury, he'll likely be on an innings limit. It makes much more sense for the Dodgers to use Ohtani later in the regular season so he can help contribute in October.
It's unfortunate for baseball fans to know that Ohtani can pitch now if needed and isn't, but it's hard to argue against this conservative approach making sense for the Dodgers.
MLB Rumors: Dodgers could get even better by pulling off Luis Robert Jr. trade
As if the Dodgers weren't loaded enough, Nightengale revealed that the team had entered trade discussions with the Chicago White Sox involving Luis Robert Jr.
"The Chicago White Sox and Los Angeles Dodgers have tabled trade discussions that would send center fielder Luis Robert Jr. to the Dodgers for Triple-A outfielder James Outman and a front-line prospect."
It's unclear who the front-line prospect would be that the Dodgers would throw in to get Robert, but virtually any deal involving just James Outman, a player not good enough to be on the team's active roster currently, and one prospect is probably a no-brainer for Los Angeles if the White Sox are willing to do it.
Robert has a concerning injury history, but the Dodgers have more than enough depth to deal with any IL stint he might have even if they trade Outman. Robert also has gotten off to a slow start this season, which is concerning considering how poorly the 2024 campaign went for him, but his ceiling is ridiculously high.
In the 2023 campaign, Robert was an All-Star, took home a Silver Slugger, received down-ballot MVP votes, and could have easily won a Gold Glove. He's a true five-tool talent at his best. Going from playing on the worst team in modern MLB history to the defending World Series champions could result in a major boost in production.
The Dodgers will be favored to win it all with or without Robert, but that team acquiring him will only make them better. That's a scary thought for the rest of the league.