Nationals Sign J.C. Romero

The Nationals announced today that they have signed lefthanded reliever J.C. Romero to a minor league deal. The decision was made to sign him after his solid World Baseball Classic with Team Puerto Rico, where he threw 4.2 innings and allowed only two runs. Romero will start the season at AAA and will serve as “insurance” in the event of an injury, presumably to Zach Duke, according to manager Davey Johnson.

Mar 17, 2013; San Francisco, CA, USA; Puerto Rico pitcher J.C. Romero (32) on the mound against Japan during the eighth inning of the World Baseball Classic semifinal at AT

Romero will be 37 in 2013, and has led a journeyman career. He has played for eight different teams, with a cumulative 4.16 ERA and 1.51 WHIP. Although his WBC may have been encouraging, his 2012 season was not. He had a 9.00 ERA in 12 IP between two teams. He will have time in the minors to improve himself, but the optimal scenario for the Nats has him never joining the Major League team.