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If there was one aspect of the Houston Astros roster that couldn't afford to have another injury, it was their starting rotation. Well, buckle up Astros fans, because Ronel Blanco is back in Houston beingseen by team doctors for an elbow injury. According to Astros manager Joe Espada, Blanco felt soreness in his right elbow a few days ago and the team is now waiting to hear the results of what's likely advanced imaging among other tests.
After the past two seasons, Astros fans have begun to feel as if the team's starting rotation is cursed. In 2024, Justin Verlander, J.P. France, Cristian Javier, Luis Garcia, and others all found their way to the injured list at some point during the season. Never mind the fact that Lance McCullers Jr. hadn't pitched in two years.
This season, Houston was already feeling the effects of those ailments from a year ago. Though McCullers is now back from his extended absence, the Astros are still without France, Javier, and Garcia. Spencer Arrighetti is currently on the IL after suffering a freak incident earlier this season, and Hayden Wesneski just landed on the 60-day IL and will undergo Tommy John surgery. The timing could not be worse for the Astros.
Ronel Blanco landing on the injured list about the last thing the Astros need
Blanco's numbers aren't overly impressive, but over the past few starts, the right-hander appeared to be back on his game. For the season, Blanco owns a 4.10 ERA with 48 punch outs in 48 ⅓ innings pitched. Over his three starts, however, Blanco has gone at least six innings and allowed a total of just six runs while striking out 22 batters. That's not the type of production that you can replace with some combination of Ryan Gusto, Colton Gordon, and Brandon Walter.
Losing Blanco — for any amount of time — would severely handicap the Astros. Houston has two frontline starters in Framber Valdez and Hunter Brown, but behind them are a bunch of also-rans if Blanco is sidelined.
This could be much ado about nothing, and perhaps the Astros are just being overly cautious. But Astros fans are undoubtedly pessimistic given the team's recent track record with injuries to starting pitchers. This is one of those hoping for the best, but expecting the worst type of situations. That's not necessarily optimistic, is it?