SEATTLE -- While the Astros hope to get Justin Verlander and Luis Garcia back in the rotation at some point in the final two months of the season and are exploring trades to add a starter, the club is banking on young arms Ronel Blanco, Hunter Brown, Spencer Arrighetti and Jake Bloss to carry the workload, along with veteran Framber Valdez. The pitcher the Astros will have to monitor the closest is Blanco, who was left off the American League All-Star team despite a terrific first half in which he went 9-4 with a 2.56 ERA in 18 starts and threw the first no-hitter of the season on April 1. The right-hander -- who was converted to a starter from a reliever last spring at the urging of general manager Dana Brown -- threw 109 innings prior to the All-Star break, which is already a career high. "He's been huge to this team -- how reliable he's been, the amount of innings, the big outs, how consistent he's been, how our team feels when he's on the mound," Astros manager Joe Espada said. "He's starting to be one of those guys that you're counting the days for him to be on the mound. You're getting a good chance to win the game. He's been one of our stars in this first half and we would not be in this position if it wasn't for the job he's done." The Astros chose to slot Blanco into the third spot in the rotation coming out of the break, meaning he'll pitch Sunday's series finale in Seattle. That will give him a full week of rest following his most recent start, which came Sunday against Texas. |
For the second start in a row, Blanco's velocity was down against the Rangers, but he still managed to get hitters out. In those two starts, he gave up four earned runs and struck out 12 batters with three walks in 13 innings. Espada noted that Blanco still touched 93-94 mph on occasion, which means there's no cause for alarm. "I think his stuff was still good," Espada said. "But it's something that when the velo drops in an outing, we discuss it with him, we check up on him. He's been bouncing back really well and recovering well, so I expect him to be really good here in Seattle." Espada said what makes Blanco so effective is that his changeup comes out of his hand the same slot as his fastball and slider, and that was still the case even with his velo a tick lower. "Hitters are committed to that one pitch, and then all of a sudden he's either going to go below the zone with a changeup or going away from the barrel with a slider," Espada said. "He's got ways to be deceptive with the stuff he has. He's been able to maintain the command and control of all pitches the entire season." Brown surpassed 100 innings pitched by throwing six scoreless in Friday's 3-0 win over the Mariners, and could make a run at his career high of 155 2/3 innings set last year. Arrighetti is at 88 1/3 combined innings between the Astros and Triple-A, putting him on pace to eclipse his career high of 124 2/3 innings set last year in the Minor Leagues. |
"It's something we need to watch very carefully," Espada said. "We've asked a lot of these guys the last couple of weeks to get back in this race, and as we move forward and we finish strong, we have to monitor the workload of everyone." By starting Valdez on Saturday in Seattle, the Astros are giving the lefty nine days off between starts to rest his arm. He last pitched July 10 against the Marlins, throwing 95 pitches in seven innings. "We're just trying to be smart and trying to match them up the best we can for the present and also the future," Espada said. |
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The Astros and Mets, both of which began as franchises in 1962, will meet on Opening Day for the first time in 2025 when New York comes to Minute Maid Park on March 27. Major League Baseball released its 2025 schedule Thursday, with game times to be announced later. This opening series will mark the first time in club history the Astros will play an Opening Day game against an Interleague opponent. In fact, the Astros will play against National Leagues teams 12 times in their first 21 games, with the Giants following the Mets to Houston. The Astros will play at St. Louis (April 14-16) and play host to the Padres (April 18-20). The Astros will make their first visit to Sacramento to face the A's on June 16-20. When it comes to 2025 holidays, the Astros will be home on Easter (April 20 vs. San Diego), Mother's Day (May 11 vs. Cincinnati), Father's Day (June 15 vs. Minnesota) and Labor Day (Sept. 1 vs. Angels). They will be in Los Angeles to face the Dodgers on July 4. Houston will close the season on the road by visiting Sacramento to face the A's (Sept. 23-25) and Anaheim to face the Angels (Sept. 26-28). |
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The Astros signed eight players Friday from their 2024 Draft class, led by fifth-round pick Cole Hertzler, a right-handed pitcher from Liberty University. Hertzler pitched two years at Liberty, where he made the transition to starter this season. He struck out 100 batters and walked 37 in 90 1/3 innings, with a 4.38 ERA. • Astros Draft signings tracker The other seven players signed Friday: Right-handers Dylan Howard (eighth round, Radford), Ryan Smith (ninth round, Illinois-Chicago), Ramsey David (10th round, Southeastern Florida), Grant Burleson (18th round, Western Kentucky) and Twine Palmer (19th round, Connors State College), shortstop Drew Vogel (15th round, Murray State) and outfielder Ethan Wagner (17th round, P27 Academy in South Carolina). The deadline to sign 2024 Draft picks is Aug. 1. The non-drafted free agents signed by the Astros are infielder Max Holy (Central Missouri), outfielder Lucas Spence (Southern Illinois-Edwardsville) and right-hander Danny Trehey (Florida Atlantic). |
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