Astros' Ronel Blanco: Excellent in return to rotation
Rotowire
Blanco (11-6) allowed four hits and two walks while striking out five over six scoreless innings to earn the win over the Angels on Sunday.
Blanco struggled with a 4.98 ERA over 34.1 innings across seven appearances immediately after the All-Star break. He's since turned things around with a 13-inning scoreless streak over three outings (two starts) in September, though it likely helped that he had a turn through the rotation skipped last week. Overall, Blanco has a 2.88 ERA, 1.09 WHIP and 154:64 K:BB through 156.1 innings this season. If the Astros stick with a six-man rotation this week, Blanco is lined up to face the Angels again, with that outing in Houston.
Blanco will be available out of the bullpen for this weekend's series against the Diamondbacks, Chandler Rome of The Athletic reports.
Manager Joe Espada confirmed, however, that the Astros will be returning to a six-man rotation following Monday's team off day, which means Blanco will be back in the rotation next weekend in Anaheim. Chances are, the right-hander will return to the bullpen for the postseason, but with Houston not having another day off after Monday until Sept. 26, Blanco could perhaps make two more starts before the end of the campaign. He's already thrown a career-high 148.1 innings in 2024.
The Astros are skipping Blanco's next turn in the rotation, Matt Kawahara of the Houston Chronicle reports.
Blanco had been on turn to start Sunday against the Diamondbacks, but Justin Verlander will move up to take the ball on regular rest that day instead. Houston has an upcoming stretch of 16 games without an off day later this month, and they plan to return Blanco to the rotation sometime during that stretch. However, it's anticipated the righty will eventually move to the bullpen on a permanent basis prior to the postseason.
Blanco (10-6) allowed three hits and four walks while striking out three across five scoreless innings to earn the win Sunday against the Royals.
Blanco struggled with efficiency, needing 101 pitches to get 15 outs. He now has 13 walks across his last 24.1 innings pitched, which covers a span of five starts. He's overcome his control issues to post a 3.33 ERA in that stretch, though he's failed to complete five innings twice while posting a 1.44 WHIP.
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Astros' Ronel Blanco: Eventual move to bullpen likely
Rotowire
Astros general manager Dana Brown said Sunday that Blanco is the most likely candidate to move to the bullpen when the team shifts to a five-man rotation, Chandler Rome of The Athletic reports.
The Astros have been utilizing a six-man rotation since Justin Verlander returned from the injured list in late August, but a move back a traditional five-man setup is imminent. Blanco's next turn would come up Sunday against the Diamondbacks, but it's not clear whether he will take the ball that day or move to the bullpen before then. The 31-year-old has been a godsend for the Astros' rotation this season, but he does have a 4.35 ERA in the second half and is already more than 20 innings past last year's workload. Blanco was used almost exclusively in relief from 2018-22.
Astros' Ronel Blanco: Falls short of quality start
Rotowire
Blanco came away with a no-decision in Monday's 3-2 extra-inning loss to the Phillies, giving up two runs on seven hits and two walks over 5.2 innings. He struck out five.
The right-hander blanked Philly through four innings before giving up single runs in the fifth and sixth, and Blanco left the mound after 91 pitches (61 strikes) just short of his 13th quality start of the season. He's taken a big step back since the All-Star break, managing only one QS in seven trips to the mound while posting a 4.98 ERA, 1.43 WHIP and 41:15 K:BB through 34.1 innings, and his career-high workload of 143.1 frames likely has something to do with that. Blanco will look for his first win since July 9 in his next outing, which lines up to come at home this weekend against the Royals.
Blanco allowed five runs on six hits and four walks while striking out six over 3.2 innings in a no-decision versus the Red Sox on Tuesday.
Blanco was able to pitch after taking a comebacker off his finger in his last start versus the Rays, but he wasn't very effective in Tuesday's outing. He allowed three runs in the first inning and another two runs in the fourth before he exited the contest at 84 pitches (52 strikes). It was the third time in five outings Blanco has come up short of completing five innings, and he's now winless over his last seven starts. The right-hander is now at a 3.14 ERA, 1.06 WHIP and 136:55 K:BB through 137.2 innings over 24 starts this season. The Astros may move to a six-man rotation with Justin Verlander (neck) returning Wednesday -- if that happens, Blanco would make his next start at Philadelphia, but he'd be on regular rest for Sunday's game in Baltimore if Houston opts to stick with a five-man rotation instead.
