SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — The passport of Enny Romero contains more stamps than most. His nomadic baseball journey had had stops in the United States, the Dominican Republic, Japan, Korea and Mexico. A trip to Taiwan isn’t off the table.
It has been nearly seven years since the last time Romero, 34, took a major-league mound. As a non-roster invitee with the Giants, Romero is as close as he’s been in recent years to making his return.
“What I’ve learned is to always keep my head up,” Romero said through team interpreter Erwin Higueros. “The game of baseball is so beautiful, but you have to know how to deal with your ups and downs. Baseball teaches you life lessons and how to handle adversities.
The first chapter of Romero’s career began standard enough. He signed with the Tampa Bay Rays out of the Dominican Republic in 2008, elevated to top prospect status as a left-hander capable of throwing triple-digits and made his major-league debut in ‘13 at 22-years-old. He pitched several unremarkable seasons for the Rays, enjoyed a career-year with the Washington Nationals in ‘17 (3.56 ERA) under Dusty Baker, then pitched a handful of innings for the Nationals, Pittsburgh Pirates and Kansas City Royals in ‘18. The last time Romero pitched in a major-league game was July 15, 2018, allowing five earned runs in one inning.
It was here that Romero’s worldly travels began in earnest.
In 2019, Romero played for the NPB’s Chuinchi Dragons in Japan, posting a 4.26 ERA over 21 starts, the first time he’d been used as a starter since his days with the Rays. Romero re-signed but didn’t pitch in 2020 due to a combination of a shoulder injury and the COVID-19 pandemic.
“I missed baseball for a complete year after an injury. Then, the pandemic hit,” Romero said. “It was frustrating because I didn’t understand it. I would cry at times as to why I was going through this. But then I understood that it was the game of baseball. There were a lot of life lessons to understand. Once I started understanding what I was going through, I kind of found peace with myself. I had my mom, my dad and my wife there that were supporting me all the way, so that also helped.”
In 2021, Romero signed with a minor league contract with the Los Angeles Dodgers with an invitation to spring training but was released by early April. Several months later, Romero returned to Japan to pitch for the Chiba Lotte Marines, where he had a 1.54 ERA in four starts down the stretch. He returned for ‘22, owning a 3.36 ERA with 77 strikeouts over 115 1/3 innings.
While playing for the Marines, Romero befriended a young rookie by the name of Roki Sasaki, who was already beginning to take the baseball world by storm with his combination of a triple digit fastball and devastating splitter. Romero fondly remembers the two seasons he spent as Sasaki’s teammate, sharing how Sasaki would text him words and phrases in Spanish. When recalling their time together, Romero called Sasaki “a special person.”
“He would joke with me. He would spend a lot of time with me,” Romero said. “He liked spending time with a lot of the Latin guys on the team. He made me feel very welcome.”
With the Marines, Romero finally found the consistent success that eluded him for half a decade. The setbacks returned in short order.
In 2023, Romero was set to pitch for the KBO’s SSG Landers but never pitched in a game due to a shoulder injury. The Landers needed someone healthy, and when they signed left-hander Roenis Elías, Romero was subsequently released. In 2024, Romero joined Toros de Tijuana of the Mexican League but missed that entire year, too, after fracturing three vertebrae one day before he was set to join them.
Despite having his summers stripped away, Romero was healthy enough to pitch in the Dominican Winter League during the ‘23-‘24 and ‘24-‘25 offseasons. Romero struggled with Leones del Escogido in the former year, posting a 5.17 ERA and being traded to Aguilas Cibaenas. Romero enjoyed a renaissance for the Cibaenas, finishing with a 1.24 ERA over 10 starts and winning LIDOM Pitcher of the Year.
Related Articles
How SF Giants’ Hicks could continue seeing velocity uptick with splitter
SF Giants option Ragsdale, Seymour in latest round of cuts
Could a second lefty join SF Giants’ Miller in bullpen?
‘I’m not a fan’: SF Giants share mixed feelings on automatic ball-strike system
How SF Giants could finally join in on stolen base party
With Aguilas, Romero had the benefit of playing alongside Jerar Encarnacion, who is a favorite to land a spot on San Francisco’s Opening Day roster. As the Giants monitored Encarnacion, Romero caught their attention, too.
Romero received offers this offseason to pitch in Mexico and Taiwan, but he bounced at the opportunity to return to the United States when the Giants offered him a minor league contract with an invitation to spring training. With a week-and-a-half left of Cactus League play, Romero remains in the running for a spot on the Opening Day roster as a second lefty.
There are no guarantees that Romero’s next stop will be in San Francisco. Romero started the spring strong but has allowed home runs in back-to-back outings. He’s allowed four earned runs over six innings (5.40 ERA) with six strikeouts, employing a three-pitch mix of a mid-90s four-seam fastball, cutter and curveball. The Giants have talked at length about having a second lefty in their bullpen but don’t view it as an absolute necessity.
“I don’t think at this point in time, anybody has stood out yet,” said manager Bob Melvin last Friday.
Romero has been a journeyman’s journeyman over the last seven years, a perpetual vagabond desiring one more opportunity to pitch in the show. He has survived several rounds of cuts, remaining in camp even as other left-handers have been eliminated from contention. The door to pitch in Taiwan remains open for Romero, a viable path if he doesn’t make the cut. Romero, though, still has his eyes on the majors. Time will tell whether that opportunity materializes — in San Francisco or elsewhere.
