The track record of high school catchers in the first round is dreadful, with Joe Mauer (No. 1 overall, 2001) the only one in the last 37 Drafts to accrue even 5.0 WAR in the Majors while staying behind the plate. Nevertheless, Romo has a chance to go in the first round in June because he's an outstanding defender who made strides offensively on the showcase circuit last summer. He's part of a powerhouse program at The Woodlands (Texas) High that has produced five big leaguers, including Paul Goldschmidt and first-round picks Kyle Drabek and Jameson Taillon.
Romo's prowess behind the plate allowed him to lock down the starting job on the U.S. 18-and-under national team for the last two years. A potential Gold Glover, he possesses soft hands, advanced receiving skills and a strong arm with a quick release. He also garners praise for his leadership ability, work ethic and baseball IQ.
Scouts have fewer questions about Romo's bat after he performed well against quality pitching during the summer, though he didn't get off to a great start in 2020 before his senior season ended prematurely. A switch-hitter, he has a better swing from the left side but has improved from the right. The Louisiana State commit will provide more contact and on-base ability than power, but he can become a .260 hitter with 12-15 homers per year while running the bases better than most catchers.
The Rockies kicked off their shortened 2020 Draft with a couple of high school position players, taking Zac Veen No. 9 overall and then going behind the dish for Romo with their Competitive Balance Round A selection at No. 35. The Woodlands (Texas) HS product got $2.1 million to sign and hit the ground running with a solid first full season for Single-A Fresno in 2021. A hand injury derailed a good start to his 2022 campaign, he shook off a very rough start at Double-A in '23 to finish well and then got some extra reps during the Arizona Fall League.
Through June 7, Romo was hitting just .197 with Hartford last year but he made some adjustments, started impacting the ball a lot more consistently and posted a .295/.361/.542 line with 10 homers the rest of the regular season. He’s an aggressive hitter who doesn’t strike out much, but he also doesn’t walk a ton and his knack for contact has led him to chase out of the zone too much. The power showed up a little more, and flipping his left-right splits from 2022, he did nearly all of his damage left-handed last year.
Romo entered pro ball with the reputation of being an outstanding defensive backstop and that still hasn’t changed. The next step of his development will be to work on game planning and game calling. He has plus arm strength but struggled with accuracy in 2023, so he went through a throwing program to help him get more consistent with his release, as well as putting work in so he can maintain arm strength through a full season. Overall, he seems back on track, and if the offensive adjustments stick, he still has the ingredients for becoming a big league regular behind the plate.
Romo was a glove-first high school catcher in the 2020 Draft coming out of The Woodlands in Texas, the same school that produced Paul Goldschmidt and Jameson Taillon. The Rockies nabbed him in Competitive Balance Round A that summer and he raised his overall profile with a strong debut in Single-A in 2021, hitting better than expected. He got off to a solid start up a level in 2022, but a lingering hand issue not only kept him from catching for a large portion of the second half, but it caused an offensive tailspin as well.
When healthy, the switch-hitter has shown the ability to make consistent hard contact. He was better from the right side of the plate in 2022, and while he did improve his walk rate a bit, he’s still a free swinger who could tap into his power more with better selectivity. His 2022 production plummeted in the second half, with a .502 OPS and a 24.8 strikeout rate from July 1 on, something he can show was caused by the injury and not regression of approach.
If he can get back in rhythm at the plate, he profiles as a big league regular backstop thanks to his outstanding defensive tools. He has a plus arm and moves well behind the plate with plus athleticism and agility as someone who runs well, especially for a catcher. The Rockies are excited to have him back healthy so he can continue to show he belongs in conversations about the best catching prospects in the game.
As the 2020 Draft approached, it wasn’t clear where Romo, a standout high school catcher from The Woodlands High School in Texas, belonged on Draft boards because of questions about his bat and a commitment to Louisiana State. After taking high school outfielder Zac Veen in the first round, the Rockies went the prep route again in taking Romo No. 35 overall and signing him to a full slot bonus of $2.1 million. Romo then went out and performed better than many expected, especially with the bat, during his pro debut in Low-A in 2021.
There is still no question that Romo’s defense is ahead of his bat. He’s a plus receiver with a plus arm, with impressive athleticism and agility that help him block well. He has good hands and his strong arm and quick release allowed him to throw out 35 percent of potential basestealers in his pro debut. Rockies pitchers already report how much they like throwing to him. He runs pretty well, especially for a catcher, and isn’t afraid to steal a base.
Concerns about Romo’s bat have certainly dissipated after he hit .314/.345/.439 with Fresno a year ago. Better from the left side of the plate, Romo has shown a knack for contact, striking out in just 14.7 percent of his plate appearances in 2021. He’ll need to continue to improve his patience at the plate so he can get to his raw power more, but he’s looking more and more like a big league regular, one whose name is creeping up into the conversation of best catching prospects in the game.
The Woodlands High School outside of Houston has long been known as a prep baseball powerhouse that has produced a lot of professional talent, led by All-Star Paul Goldschmidt. But when the Rockies took Romo, considered one of the best high school catchers in the 2020 Draft class, in the Competitive Balance Round A last June, it marked the first time a player had been drafted out of the school since 2013 and the first time one was selected in the top two rounds since Jameson Taillon was the No. 2 overall pick back in 2010.
Romo’s calling card is definitely his work behind the plate. He has Gold Glove potential, with excellent hands, plus receiving and blocking skills and an outstanding arm that’s aided even more by his quick release. Pitchers love throwing to him and he has the natural leadership teams covet from a backstop.
There were some questions about Romo’s bat after a poor start to his senior season before the shutdown, but he has performed well in the past against good competition on the summer showcase circuit and he showed off a short, quick stroke with a solid overall approach and a feel for the barrel from both sides of the plate during instructional league play last fall. It’s hit over power, but if he can hold his own with the bat, his defense should give him the chance to be a big league starter behind the plate.
High school catching has been tough to develop, with Joe Mauer, the No. 1 pick in 2001, the only first-round pick in the last 37 Drafts to accrue more than 5.0 WAR in the big leagues while continuing to catch. Romo was ranked as the second-best prep backstop in the class, behind Tyler Soderstrom, and ended up being the second one taken (also behind Soderstrom) when the Rockies selected him in the Competitive Balance Round A, giving him full pick value ($2,095,800) to sign.
Romo's prowess behind the plate allowed him to lock down the starting job on the U.S. 18-and-under national team for two years in a row. A potential Gold Glover, he possesses soft hands, advanced receiving skills and a strong arm with a quick release. He also garners praise for his leadership ability, work ethic and baseball IQ.
Scouts have fewer questions about Romo's bat after he performed well against quality pitching on the summer showcase circuit, though he didn't get off to a great start in 2020 before his senior season ended prematurely. A switch-hitter, he has a better swing from the left side but has improved from the right. He’s more contact and on-base than power, but he can become a .260 hitter with 12-15 homers per year while running the bases better than most catchers.
Note: xHR tells how many of this player's home runs would have been out of other stadiums. The "Adjusted" view here accounts for different wall heights, distances and environmental effects using Statcast Park Factor data.
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Year
HR
2024
0
1
1
1
0
1
1
1
0
0
0
1
1
1
1
1
0
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
0
1
0
1
0
0
Player
0
1
1
1
0
1
1
1
0
0
0
1
1
1
1
1
0
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
0
1
0
1
0
0
Note: xHR tells how many of this player's home runs would have been out of other stadiums. The "Standard" view here accounts for different wall heights and distances but excludes environmental effects. It is based purely on the observed trajectory of the hit.
! Note: Shifts are through the 2022 season, Shaded starting from the 2023 season, Shift: three or more infielders are on the same side of second base, Shade: positioned outside of their typical responsible slices of the field. Learn more about how positioning is defined here