Stefen Romero

Stefen Daniel Romero (born October 17, 1988) is an American professional baseball right fielder for the Diablos Rojos del México of the Mexican League. He has played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Seattle Mariners and in Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) for the Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles and Orix Buffaloes.

Stefen Romero
Romero with the Orix Buffaloes
Diablos Rojos del México – No. 26
Right fielder
Born: (1988-10-17) October 17, 1988
Tucson, Arizona, U.S.
Bats: Right
Throws: Right
Professional debut
MLB: April 1, 2014, for the Seattle Mariners
NPB: March 31, 2017, for the Orix Buffaloes
MLB statistics
(through 2016 season)
Batting average.195
Home runs4
Runs batted in17
NPB statistics
(through 2021 season)
Batting average.264
Home runs96
Runs batted in264
Teams

Career

Amateur

Romero attended Sunnyside High School in Tucson, Arizona. Playing for the school's baseball team, he earned an all-southern Arizona honorable mention from the Tucson Citizen following his senior season.[1] He also played for the school's basketball team.[2]

Romero enrolled at Pima Community College. After playing college baseball at Pima for two years, he transferred to Oregon State University, where he played for the Oregon State Beavers baseball team.[3] In 2009, he played collegiate summer baseball with the Bourne Braves of the Cape Cod Baseball League.[4] He had a .326 batting average in 2010, and was named to the All-Pac-10 Conference First Team.

Seattle Mariners

The Seattle Mariners selected Romero in the 12th round of the 2010 Major League Baseball Draft.[5][6] He made his professional debut in 2011 with the Single-A Clinton LumberKings, logging a .280/.342/.462 slash line with 16 home runs and 65 RBI.

In 2012, Romero was the Mariners Minor League Player of the Year after he hit .352/.391/.599 with 23 home runs and 101 runs batted in with the Jackson Generals of the Class AA Southern League.[7][8] He was assigned to the Tacoma Rainiers of the Class AAA Pacific Coast League in 2013, but started the season on the disabled list with an oblique injury.[9] Romero was added to the Mariners 40-man roster on November 20, 2013.[10]

In 2014, Romero made the Mariners' Opening Day roster,[11] and had his major league debut on April 1.[12] He struggled, batting .192 in 73 games.[13] He began the 2015 season in Tacoma, playing in 116 games for the team, and also went 4-for-21 in 24 plate appearances for the Mariners. He began the 2016 season in Tacoma, and went 4-for-17 in 19 plate appearances for the Mariners that year.[14][15]

On November 19, 2016, the Mariners released Romero to pursue an opportunity to play in Japan.[16]

Orix Buffaloes

He signed with the Orix Buffaloes of Nippon Professional Baseball's Pacific League on November 24, 2016.[17] In 2017, Romero slashed .274/.330/.508 with 26 home runs and 66 RBI. He signed a three-year contract extension with the Buffaloes on August 4, 2017, earning $2.5 million per season.[18] In 2018, Romero batted .237/.313/.451 with 25 home runs and 63 RBI. In 2019, Romero played in 81 games for Orix, batting .305/.363/.539 with 18 home runs and 63 RBI. On December 2, 2019, he became a free agent.[19]

Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles

On January 27, 2020, Romero signed with the Rakuten Golden Eagles of Nippon Professional Baseball(NPB).[20] On February 15, 2020, he held press conference.[21] On the year, Romero slashed .272/.354/.539 with 24 home runs and 63 RBI for Rakuten. On December 2, 2020, he became a free agent.[22]

Second stint with the Buffaloes

On January 8, 2021, Romero signed a one-year contract to return to the Orix Buffaloes of NPB.[23] Due to the influence of COVID-19, he was in a situation where his family could not come to Japan and lived away from his family. The Buffaloes acknowledged his desire to prioritize his family and he decided to leave the team on August 3.[24][25]

Los Angeles Dodgers

On February 12, 2022, Romero signed a minor league contract with the Los Angeles Dodgers.[26] After beginning the season with the Triple-A Oklahoma City Dodgers he was added to the major league roster on June 22.[27] He was designated for assignment on June 25, without appearing in a game.[28] He cleared waivers and was sent outright to Triple-A Oklahoma City on June 27.[29] He played in 30 games for Oklahoma City, hitting .265/.353/.431 with 3 home runs and 22 RBI[30] before he was placed on the injured list on July 9 and stayed there the rest of the season.[31] He elected free agency on November 10, 2022.

Diablos Rojos del México

On March 6, 2023, Romero signed with the Diablos Rojos del México of the Mexican League.[32]

Personal life

Stefen's younger brother, Santiago, was a teammate on their high school baseball team.[1]

References
  1. "Sunnyside'sRomero stars vs. American - Tucson Citizen Morgue, Part 1 (2006-2009)". Tucsoncitizen.com. July 7, 2007. Retrieved April 11, 2013.
  2. "Diminutive Apache hits eight 3-pointers, is area's top scorer - Tucson Citizen Morgue, Part 1 (2006-2009)". Tucsoncitizen.com. December 12, 2006. Retrieved April 11, 2013.
  3. "Pima baseball team to count on newcomers this season - Tucson Citizen Morgue, Part 1 (2006-2009)". Tucsoncitizen.com. January 17, 2009. Retrieved April 11, 2013.
  4. "2009 Bourne Braves". thebaseballcube.com. Retrieved September 23, 2021.
  5. OSU (June 8, 2010). "MLB Draft 2010: Oregon State third baseman Stefen Romero picked by Seattle Mariners". The Oregonian. Retrieved January 29, 2014.
  6. "Minor league spotlight: Former Oregon State infielder Stefen Romero signs with Seattle Mariners, eyes the future". The Oregonian. Retrieved January 29, 2014.
  7. "Mariners name INF Stefen Romero Minor League Player of the Year; RHP Carter Capps named Pitcher of the Year". MLB.com. May 24, 2013. Retrieved January 29, 2014.
  8. Stone, Larry (February 21, 2013). "Stefen Romero is a prospect to watch this spring". The Seattle Times. Retrieved January 29, 2014.
  9. Stone, Larry (April 3, 2013). "Mariners set minor-league rosters: Zunino, Hultzen, Paxton in AAA, Walker in AA | Hot Stone League". The Seattle Times. Retrieved April 11, 2013.
  10. "Mariners add four to 40-man roster before deadline". MLB.com. November 20, 2013. Retrieved January 29, 2014.
  11. "Hansen's Sunday Notebook: Romero makes Mariners' opening-day roster". Azstarnet.com. March 30, 2014. Retrieved April 3, 2014.
  12. Divish, Ryan (October 1, 2012). "Two very different starts for Stefen Romero, Corey Hart | Mariners". The Seattle Times. Retrieved April 3, 2014.
  13. "Stefen Romero's strong spring forcing Mariners to consider him for spot on opening-day roster". The Seattle Times. March 15, 2016. Retrieved August 6, 2017.
  14. "Rainiers preview: Stefen Romero, James Jones start back with Tacoma after lengthy stints in Seattle". thenewstribune.com. Retrieved August 6, 2017.
  15. "Mariners send James Paxton, Chris Taylor, Stefen Romero to Tacoma, hand fifth starter's job to Nathan Karns". The Seattle Times. March 28, 2016. Retrieved August 6, 2017.
  16. Polishuk, Mark (November 19, 2016). "Minor MLB Transactions: 11/19/16". mlbtraderumors.com. Retrieved November 19, 2016.
  17. Adams, Steve (November 24, 2016). "Stefen Romero To Sign With Japan's Orix Buffaloes". mlbtraderumors.com. Retrieved November 24, 2016.
  18. "Ex-Mariners OF Romero signs new deal in Japan". ESPN. Retrieved August 6, 2017.
  19. "2019年度 自由契約選手". NPB.jp 日本野球機構 (in Japanese). Retrieved December 22, 2019.
  20. "ステフェン・ロメロ選手 契約合意に関して". 東北楽天ゴールデンイーグルス オフィシャルサイト (in Japanese). January 27, 2020. Retrieved March 6, 2020.
  21. "ロメロ選手の入団記者会見を行いました". 東北楽天ゴールデンイーグルス オフィシャルサイト (in Japanese). February 15, 2020. Retrieved March 6, 2020.
  22. "2020年度 自由契約選手". NPB.jp 日本野球機構 (in Japanese). Retrieved January 8, 2021.
  23. "ステフェン・ロメロ選手獲得のお知らせ". オリックス・バファローズ オフィシャルサイト (in Japanese). January 8, 2021. Retrieved January 8, 2021.
  24. "Orix Buffaloes Press release 2021/08/03(火) ロメロ選手 ウエイバー公示申請のお知らせ". Orix Buffaloes Official site (in Japanese). August 8, 2021. Retrieved August 9, 2021.
  25. "Nikkan Sports baseball news オリックスのロメロが退団 コロナ禍で家族が来日できないため決断". Nikkan Sports (in Japanese). August 3, 2021. Retrieved August 11, 2021.
  26. McDonald, Darragh (February 12, 2022). "Dodgers Sign Stefen Romero To Minor League Contract". mlbtraderumors.com. Retrieved February 12, 2022.
  27. "Injuries & Moves: Alberto to paternity list; Ríos to 60-day". MLB.com. June 22, 2022. Retrieved June 22, 2022.
  28. Stephem, Eric (June 25, 2022). "Hanser Alberto activated from paternity leave, Dodgers designate Stefen Romero for assignment". SB Nation. Retrieved June 25, 2022.
  29. "Dodgers' Stefen Romero: Outrighted to Triple-A". cbssports.com. Retrieved March 23, 2023.
  30. "Stefen Romero Minor, Fall, Winter Statistics". Baseball Reference. Retrieved September 19, 2022.
  31. "Stefen Romero Stats, Fantasy and News". milb.com. Retrieved September 19, 2022.
  32. https://www.milb.com/mexican/news/lmb-movimientos-en-listas-de-reserva-6-de-marzo-de-2023
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