Down at Coca-Cola Field in Buffalo today, Bisons manager Gary Allenson did something very strange. He took out starter Ricky Romero after he threw 2.2 innings of no-hit ball in his start against the Gwinnett Braves in game 1 of a doubleheader. Why the hell would Allenson do that?

Romero walked nine batters -- a new modern era record for the #Bisons. And he did it in 2 2/3 innings. — Amy Moritz (@amymoritz) May 16, 2014

Oh.

The final line is pitiful: 2.2 IP, 2 ER, 9 BB, 2 K, 74 pitches, 25 strikes. That's nine walks on eight outs. Romero started the game with a leadoff walk, but got out of it by inducing Joey Terdoslavich (teehee) to ground into a double play. But in the second inning, Romero gave up five straight two-out walks, and was taken out after walking two straight (also with two outs) in the third.

I don't know what can be done with Romero. This season he has worked with a new manager and pitching coach in Buffalo and yet he still looks like the woeful figure we saw last year. Entering today's game, he owned a 6.00 ERA through six games, walking 17.6% of the batters he's faced (a little arithmetic shows that after this evening's appearance, that number has jumped to 21.6%) . Remember, this is triple-A. I think we've mentioned it for a long time now, but perhaps truly this is the time for him to just leave the Toronto Blue Jays organization. Maybe go home for a breather. Maybe go to another place to pitch. Maybe start throwing with his right hand Maybe start taking batting practice or something. As a human, it's been hard to see him struggle like this.

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