The Baltimore Orioles have one of the most talented catching tandems in Major League Baseball, but they didn’t let that stop them from seizing a fascinating opportunity.
Coming off a ghastly 43-119 season and with a new front office taking the reins, the Colorado Rockies waived a handful of players this week to create openings on the 40-man roster, which they could use on free agents, trade pickups, or selections in next week’s Rule 5 Draft.
One of the players let go, however, was a former first-round draft pick who was a well-regarded prospect in the Rockies’ system with major league experience. That opened the door for Baltimore to swoop in.
On Friday, the Orioles claimed catcher Drew Romo on waivers, per the official transactions log on his MLB.com roster page. The 24-year-old, who the Rockies selected in the competitive balance portion of the 2020 draft out of high school in Texas, immediately became a member of the Baltimore 40-man roster.
That roster is now full, as the Orioles had a busy day on waivers, also claiming outfielder Will Robertson from the Pittsburgh Pirates. Baltimore has four primary catchers: Adley Rutschman, Samuel Basallo, Maverick Handley, and Romo.
As recently as 2024, Romo was ranked No. 9 on MLB Pipeline’s list of Top 30 Rockies prospects.
Meanwhile, the Rockies also waived right-handed pitcher Anthony Molina, and their 40-man roster sits at 38 heading into the weekend of the winter meetings. All-Star Hunter Goodman is one of only two catchers on the roster alongside little-known backup Braxton Fulford.
Romo is 9-for-54 (.167) in 19 major league games thus far, and he does not have a home run.The switch-hitter may face long odds to make the major league roster out of spring training (note the aforementioned logjam of catchers in front of him), but he has two minor-league options remaining.
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