Blanco is prioritizing an attack of the strike zone this season, Matt Kawahara of the Houston Chronicle reports.
Blanco had one of the biggest breakout performances in 2024, but he struggled to consistently find the strike zone, as his 10.1 percent walk rate in the regular season was the highest mark of any qualified starter. He escaped relatively unscathed thanks to a .187 BABIP with runners on base and .160 with runners in scoring position, both of which are unlikely to repeat in 2025. As a result, he plans to be less precise with his pitches in hopes of finding the strike zone more consistently.
Blanco (13-6) picked up the win Friday at Cleveland, pitching five scoreless innings while allowing one hit and two walks. He struck out three.
The Houston right-hander took a 0.95 ERA over 19 September frames into this game, and Friday represented his third scoreless start of the month. Blanco yielded just one hit -- a Will Brennan single in the fifth inning -- as he stymied the Guardians over 86 pitches. The 31-year-old caps a brilliant breakout season in which he was a fantasy star, producing a 2.80 ERA, 1.09 WHIP and 166:68 K:BB across 167.1 innings, including a no-hitter on April 1.
Astros' Ronel Blanco: Fans nine in comfortable victory
Rotowire
Blanco (12-6) earned the win over the Angels on Saturday, allowing two runs on seven hits and two walks while striking out nine batters over six innings.
Blanco gave up a second-inning run that tied the score 1-1, but Houston put up six more runs by the end of the third to give the right-hander plenty of padding. He yielded just one more tally -- on a Logan O'Hoppe solo homer -- and notched his second straight quality start (and second consecutive victory). Blanco has emerged as a key part of the Astros' rotation with a 2.88 ERA (fifth among qualified pitchers), 1.10 WHIP and 163:66 K:BB over 162.1 innings, though it's possible he moves to the bullpen once the postseason begins.
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.
