What Nationality Is JoJo Romero?
JoJo Romero is American. He was born in Camarillo, California, United States.
With a bushy mustache and a devastating four-pitch mix, the lefty from Northside Little League and Oxnard High has broken into the big leagues with a flourish these last two weeks.
Romero made his debut at Atlanta on Aug. 21, striking out the side while reaching 97 mph on the radar gun, and hasn’t allowed a hit in four outings for the Philadelphia Phillies across 3.2 innings.
For a team that is second in the National League East and in contention for one of eight NL playoff positions in this season’s expanded playoffs, he has struck out six of the first 12 batters he has faced.
Only Atlanta’s perennial All-Star Freddie Freeman had reached base against Romero before Friday, when he worked a walk at Citizen’s Bank Ballpark on Aug. 30.
“When you first get that call, it’s everything you dream of,” Romero added.
For him, the lengthy trip from Oxnard to Reno, including college stays in Prescott, Arizona, and Reno, as well as minor league, stops in Williamsport, Pennsylvania, Clearwater and Lakewood, Florida, Reading, and Allentown, Pennsylvania, has flown by.
“It’s amazing how quickly time passes,” Romero said. “I can recall every detail of the journey.”
Through friends, family, and especially his father, Oxnard High assistant baseball coach Abel Romero, he’s felt connected to his birthplace the entire way.
“Having half of Oxnard on my father’s Facebook page helps,” Romero added.
On Aug. 21, when his son made his major league debut, Abel recorded the event on Facebook Live.
Last season, when Pacifica High football and Channel Islands High boys soccer both won titles, Romero an Oxnard High alum made sure to publicly congratulate both teams.
Since going 7-6 with a 3.80 ERA in 18 starts at Double-A Reading in 2018, Romero has been on the verge of breaking through as a top prospect in the Philadelphia system.