SF Giants: Popular Relievers Reunite in Oakland

The Oakland Athletics bolstered the bullpen on Saturday after adding a pair of former SF Giants relievers.

Jeff Passan of ESPN reports that Yusmeiro Petit is re-signing to Oakland, whereas Sergio Romo is returning to the Bay Area as well for the first time since his SF Giants tenure ended in 2016. The terms are nearly identical in substance in that they are for one year with Petit earning $2.55 million compared to Romo at $2.25 million

Popular SF Giants relievers reunite in Oakland

Petit was originally brought into the Giants organization in 2012 on a minor-league contract. That relationship proved to be advantageous for both player and team. In four seasons with San Francisco, the right-handed hurler registered a 3.66 ERA, 3.25 FIP, and a solid 4.62 SO/W ratio in 245.2 frames while working as a swingman.

Petit made stops with the Washington Nationals (2016) and the Los Angeles Angels (2017) before landing in Oakland starting in 2018. He has really carved out a nice career as an effective bullpen arm capable of handling a heavy workload.

Of course, his career also includes a handful of memorable moments in a Giants uniform:

• Setting a major league record by retiring 46 consecutive batters.
• Completing 8.2 innings of a perfect game against the Arizona Diamondbacks before yielding a hit to Eric Chavez in September of 2013.
• Pitching six scoreless innings in Game 2 of the NLDS against the Nationals to secure the win.

On the other hand, Romo joins Oakland after making stops with Los Angeles Dodgers (2017), Tampa Bay Rays (2017-2018), Miami Marlins (2019), and the Minnesota Twins (2019-2020).

Romo made the unlikely ascent from 28th round pick in 2005 out of Colorado Mesa University to become a key bullpen cog for a team that won three titles in five years.

The 37-year-old is undoubtedly one of the best relievers in Giants history. In nine seasons with San Francisco, he registered a 2.58 ERA, 2.71 FIP, 0.955 WHIP, and a 5.60 SO/W ratio while flashing a devastating slider:

His time in the Orange and Black included 28 postseason appearances in which he yielded just eight runs. Giants history might look a little different if not for the contributions from Petit and Romo.

The A’s are hoping to catch some of that magic as well as they get ready for a division that does not have a clear-cut favorite. Bringing back Petit and adding Romo is just the personality and chemistry that teams need to become something special.