{"id":407953,"date":"2026-08-16T08:02:09","date_gmt":"2026-08-16T08:02:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/407953\/"},"modified":"2026-08-16T08:02:09","modified_gmt":"2026-08-16T08:02:09","slug":"houston-astros-rotation-ronel-blanco-hayden-wesneski-struggle","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/407953\/","title":{"rendered":"Houston Astros rotation: Ronel Blanco, Hayden Wesneski struggle"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"While<\/p>\n

While Hayden Wesneski had his roughest outing Saturday in four starts since returning from Tommy John surgery, he said\u00a0his stuff against Seattle was \u201cprobably the best it\u2019s been.\u201d<\/p>\n

Jason Fochtman\/Houston Chronicle<\/p>\n

After a trade deadline<\/a> at which the Houston Astros<\/a> did not add pitching, general manager Dana Brown offered a platitude. The recent return of right-handers Ronel Blanco and Hayden Wesneski from elbow surgeries could be \u201cin itself like a trade acquisition\u201d<\/a> to help stabilize their rotation, Brown suggested.<\/p>\n

The observation oozed optimism. Meanwhile, the Astros\u2019 inaction on the pitching front did promise to magnify the performance of internal reinforcements down the stretch.<\/p>\n

With 38 games to play in the regular season, no larger uncertainty exists<\/a> for a first-place Houston club than its rotation. What risk lay in not fortifying it at the deadline has hardly lessened in the nearly two weeks since, underscored by the Astros\u2019 handling of their options this weekend against the Mariners.<\/p>\n

Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n

To line up their three most reliable starters against Seattle, the Astros bypassed Blanco and moved up Wesneski to pitch Saturday on four days\u2019 rest. Blanco sat in the bullpen Saturday. So did Cristian Javier. Tatsuya Imai was unavailable after pitching in bulk relief Wednesday in San Francisco.<\/p>\n

Those are three of the six starting candidates on Houston\u2019s active roster. Off days on either side of the Mariners series offered some flexibility with the rotation plans, but a 10-5 loss Saturday<\/a> reinforced questions of how the Astros will proceed with one of the pitchers Brown tabbed for reliability.<\/p>\n

BATTERS
\nAVG
\nOBA
\nAB
\nR
\nH
\n2B
\n3B
\nHR
\nRBI
\nBB
\nSO
\nSB
\nCS
\nE<\/p>\n

Team Totals
\n.244
\n.319
\n4181
\n574
\n1020
\n183
\n13
\n166
\n547
\n416
\n1002
\n40
\n17
\n55<\/p>\n

Alvarez
\n.321
\n.436
\n442
\n82
\n142
\n25
\n0
\n36
\n88
\n86
\n91
\n1
\n0
\n2<\/p>\n

Pe\u00f1a
\n.288
\n.344
\n302
\n58
\n87
\n14
\n1
\n13
\n39
\n21
\n67
\n8
\n1
\n9<\/p>\n

Correa
\n.279
\n.369
\n122
\n22
\n34
\n8
\n0
\n3
\n16
\n18
\n26
\n1
\n0
\n1<\/p>\n

Delgado
\n.273
\n.314
\n33
\n3
\n9
\n1
\n0
\n1
\n4
\n2
\n5
\n0
\n0
\n2<\/p>\n

Paredes
\n.260
\n.350
\n431
\n47
\n112
\n21
\n1
\n16
\n67
\n46
\n69
\n0
\n0
\n6<\/p>\n

Shewmake
\n.256
\n.272
\n78
\n10
\n20
\n4
\n0
\n3
\n9
\n2
\n13
\n0
\n0
\n2<\/p>\n

Allen
\n.255
\n.298
\n110
\n19
\n28
\n4
\n0
\n1
\n12
\n7
\n24
\n2
\n0
\n5<\/p>\n

Diaz
\n.251
\n.280
\n227
\n25
\n57
\n9
\n0
\n8
\n28
\n9
\n37
\n0
\n1
\n2<\/p>\n

Altuve
\n.245
\n.307
\n380
\n56
\n93
\n15
\n2
\n13
\n36
\n33
\n84
\n4
\n2
\n5<\/p>\n

Walker
\n.236
\n.314
\n441
\n61
\n104
\n24
\n1
\n23
\n71
\n42
\n114
\n0
\n0
\n0<\/p>\n

Harris
\n.226
\n.286
\n31
\n4
\n7
\n0
\n1
\n0
\n4
\n2
\n6
\n2
\n0
\n0<\/p>\n

Trammell
\n.224
\n.315
\n174
\n26
\n39
\n6
\n2
\n7
\n20
\n19
\n61
\n3
\n3
\n2<\/p>\n

Smith
\n.223
\n.292
\n400
\n53
\n89
\n15
\n3
\n16
\n45
\n35
\n109
\n10
\n2
\n5<\/p>\n

Wade
\n.218
\n.344
\n78
\n11
\n17
\n4
\n0
\n2
\n15
\n15
\n19
\n0
\n0
\n0<\/p>\n

V\u00e1zquez
\n.216
\n.271
\n208
\n20
\n45
\n7
\n0
\n6
\n24
\n16
\n43
\n1
\n0
\n0<\/p>\n

Loperfido
\n.216
\n.314
\n102
\n13
\n22
\n7
\n1
\n1
\n12
\n14
\n31
\n1
\n1
\n1<\/p>\n

Meyers
\n.213
\n.268
\n141
\n15
\n30
\n7
\n0
\n3
\n11
\n10
\n31
\n1
\n2
\n0<\/p>\n

Dezenzo
\n.213
\n.280
\n75
\n11
\n16
\n4
\n0
\n1
\n3
\n7
\n31
\n1
\n0
\n1<\/p>\n

Matthews
\n.197
\n.250
\n208
\n23
\n41
\n5
\n1
\n7
\n22
\n15
\n71
\n4
\n4
\n1<\/p>\n

Price
\n.167
\n.231
\n12
\n1
\n2
\n1
\n0
\n0
\n0
\n1
\n6
\n0
\n0
\n1<\/p>\n

Spence
\n.162
\n.244
\n37
\n4
\n6
\n1
\n0
\n0
\n3
\n3
\n15
\n0
\n1
\n1<\/p>\n

Cole
\n.157
\n.189
\n51
\n4
\n8
\n1
\n0
\n3
\n8
\n1
\n21
\n0
\n0
\n1<\/p>\n

Varsho
\n.150
\n.261
\n40
\n3
\n6
\n0
\n0
\n1
\n3
\n6
\n10
\n1
\n0
\n0<\/p>\n

Johnson
\n.143
\n.294
\n14
\n1
\n2
\n0
\n0
\n0
\n0
\n2
\n3
\n0
\n0
\n0<\/p>\n

Whitcomb
\n.130
\n.167
\n23
\n2
\n3
\n0
\n0
\n2
\n5
\n1
\n11
\n0
\n0
\n0<\/p>\n

Salazar
\n.056
\n.227
\n18
\n0
\n1
\n0
\n0
\n0
\n1
\n3
\n3
\n0
\n0
\n0<\/p>\n

Vel\u00e1zquez
\n.000
\n.000
\n3
\n0
\n0
\n0
\n0
\n0
\n1
\n0
\n1
\n0
\n0
\n0<\/p>\n

___<\/p>\n

PITCHERS
\nW
\nL
\nERA
\nG
\nGS
\nSV
\nIP
\nH
\nR
\nER
\nHR
\nBB
\nSO<\/p>\n

Team Totals
\n63
\n61
\n4.60
\n124
\n124
\n38
\n1100.1
\n985
\n603
\n562
\n165
\n510
\n1082<\/p>\n

Meyers
\n0
\n0
\n0.00
\n1
\n0
\n0
\n1
\n0
\n0
\n0
\n0
\n0
\n0<\/p>\n

Hader
\n4
\n1
\n0.93
\n30
\n0
\n17
\n29
\n12
\n3
\n3
\n1
\n10
\n40<\/p>\n

Santa
\n0
\n1
\n1.17
\n10
\n0
\n0
\n15.1
\n8
\n6
\n2
\n1
\n6
\n9<\/p>\n

VanWey
\n1
\n0
\n1.50
\n5
\n0
\n0
\n6
\n5
\n2
\n1
\n0
\n0
\n5<\/p>\n

Okert
\n6
\n1
\n2.08
\n60
\n1
\n0
\n60.2
\n40
\n15
\n14
\n6
\n12
\n61<\/p>\n

Lambert
\n8
\n6
\n3.11
\n21
\n21
\n0
\n118.2
\n91
\n42
\n41
\n12
\n46
\n117<\/p>\n

Sousa
\n0
\n1
\n3.46
\n16
\n0
\n0
\n13
\n11
\n7
\n5
\n1
\n7
\n15<\/p>\n

Blubaugh
\n4
\n2
\n3.48
\n46
\n0
\n1
\n75
\n58
\n31
\n29
\n10
\n33
\n77<\/p>\n

Pearson
\n1
\n0
\n3.60
\n16
\n0
\n1
\n20
\n16
\n10
\n8
\n1
\n12
\n16<\/p>\n

Brown
\n3
\n2
\n3.68
\n12
\n12
\n0
\n63.2
\n46
\n28
\n26
\n8
\n35
\n67<\/p>\n

King
\n2
\n3
\n3.88
\n49
\n1
\n6
\n51
\n51
\n24
\n22
\n7
\n19
\n42<\/p>\n

De Los Santos
\n2
\n3
\n4.24
\n54
\n0
\n5
\n57.1
\n54
\n31
\n27
\n7
\n13
\n53<\/p>\n

Teng
\n5
\n6
\n4.35
\n25
\n10
\n0
\n68.1
\n62
\n37
\n33
\n10
\n30
\n67<\/p>\n

Abreu
\n4
\n3
\n4.50
\n47
\n0
\n7
\n44
\n31
\n24
\n22
\n7
\n32
\n57<\/p>\n

Arrighetti
\n7
\n5
\n4.60
\n17
\n17
\n0
\n88
\n68
\n47
\n45
\n12
\n50
\n87<\/p>\n

Wesneski
\n2
\n1
\n5.16
\n4
\n4
\n0
\n22.2
\n23
\n13
\n13
\n2
\n7
\n18<\/p>\n

Roa
\n0
\n1
\n5.19
\n7
\n0
\n0
\n8.2
\n10
\n5
\n5
\n1
\n7
\n6<\/p>\n

Imai
\n6
\n4
\n5.29
\n17
\n15
\n0
\n64.2
\n53
\n38
\n38
\n9
\n42
\n80<\/p>\n

Bolton
\n0
\n1
\n5.40
\n8
\n3
\n1
\n20
\n21
\n12
\n12
\n3
\n14
\n22<\/p>\n

Ullola
\n0
\n0
\n5.40
\n3
\n0
\n0
\n5
\n4
\n3
\n3
\n2
\n1
\n7<\/p>\n

Burrows
\n4
\n9
\n5.99
\n18
\n17
\n0
\n94.2
\n112
\n69
\n63
\n21
\n35
\n75<\/p>\n

Javier
\n1
\n3
\n6.68
\n10
\n6
\n0
\n32.1
\n39
\n24
\n24
\n6
\n16
\n25<\/p>\n

McCullers
\n2
\n3
\n6.86
\n8
\n8
\n0
\n39.1
\n38
\n32
\n30
\n7
\n22
\n43<\/p>\n

Murray
\n0
\n0
\n7.43
\n8
\n0
\n0
\n13.1
\n19
\n11
\n11
\n1
\n7
\n8<\/p>\n

Weiss
\n0
\n3
\n7.62
\n9
\n2
\n0
\n26
\n35
\n24
\n22
\n8
\n20
\n30<\/p>\n

Blanco
\n0
\n1
\n7.71
\n5
\n4
\n0
\n23.1
\n22
\n20
\n20
\n7
\n12
\n20<\/p>\n

France
\n0
\n0
\n8.10
\n3
\n0
\n0
\n6.2
\n6
\n6
\n6
\n1
\n5
\n4<\/p>\n

Salazar
\n0
\n0
\n9.00
\n1
\n0
\n0
\n1
\n1
\n1
\n1
\n1
\n0
\n0<\/p>\n

Alexander
\n1
\n1
\n9.33
\n4
\n2
\n0
\n18.1
\n21
\n19
\n19
\n4
\n8
\n14<\/p>\n

Gordon
\n0
\n0
\n11.57
\n4
\n1
\n0
\n9.1
\n21
\n12
\n12
\n6
\n3
\n11<\/p>\n

Mu\u00f1oz
\n0
\n0
\n15.75
\n3
\n0
\n0
\n4
\n7
\n7
\n7
\n3
\n6
\n6<\/p>\n

Both\u00a0Wesneski and Blanco pitched Saturday, itself a deviation from the ideal Brown presented. Both emerged with similar lines, though under different circumstances.<\/p>\n

Wesneski pitched on four days\u2019 rest for the first time since his return. He had thrown seven innings Monday<\/a> in San Francisco, albeit on an economical 83 pitches. His first three outings back from surgery had yielded a 3.86 ERA and two quality starts.<\/p>\n

Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n

Even on regular rest, which he downplayed, Wesneski deemed his stuff Saturday \u201cprobably the best it\u2019s been.\u201d His four-seamer averaged an extra tick of velocity, an encouraging sign. He thought his slider had \u201cbite to it\u201d and his changeup performed better.<\/p>\n

The Mariners, still, managed five runs against him in four innings. Four scored in a second inning which proved difficult to stem. Julio Rodr\u00edguez lined a cutter for a leadoff single. Josh Naylor singled on a two-strike fastball well above the zone. Cole Young\u2019s chopper eluded Wesneski for an infield hit.<\/p>\n

Manager Joe Espada deemed the latter \u201cthe big play in that game,\u201d driving in a run and accelerating the inning. Victor Robles hit a sinker for a triple that glanced off the glove of sliding center fielder Daulton Varsho. Brendan Donovan beat another fastball well above the zone for a two-out RBI single.<\/p>\n

\u201cLooking back on it, I didn\u2019t think they were bad pitches,\u201d Wesneski said. \u201cThey did a good job putting it in play and strung a few hits together. Part of baseball. A few pitches I could have changed up and thrown something different, but not a whole lot of regret throwing the pitches I threw and the intensity behind it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Wesneski threw 81 pitches in four innings before Espada relieved him. The right-hander still has worked at least 5 \u2154 in three of four starts. More concerning, perhaps, are Blanco\u2019s initial results.<\/p>\n

Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n

\"Ronel<\/p>\n

Ronel Blanco has\u00a0given up seven homers in 23 \u2153 innings since returning from the injured list, including a three-run homer that put Saturday\u2019s game out of reach.<\/p>\n

Jason Fochtman\/Houston Chronicle<\/p>\n

Blanco, pitching after a seven-day hiatus, worked the final four innings for Houston, also allowing five runs. He owns a 7.71 ERA in 23 \u2153 innings since his return. Blanco has allowed 22 hits in that span, seven of them home runs, including a three-run homer by Cole Young in the ninth inning Saturday.<\/p>\n

That came in the wake of Isaac Paredes\u2019 two-run home run in the eighth, which pared the Astros\u2019 deficit to three runs, and effectively quashed any hopes of a comeback. Blanco had also allowed an RBI double to Brock Rodden and an RBI single to Donovan in the top of the eighth.<\/p>\n

\u201cJust missed out over the plate too much,\u201d Espada said. \u201cA ton of strikes, which that\u2019s what he does, and it was nice to see because he\u2019d been kind of struggling with a few walks in his last few outings \u2026 Just kind of creating more swing-and-miss, I think we need that out of Blanco.\u201d<\/p>\n

Blanco, who buoyed the Astros\u2019 rotation in 2024<\/a>, entered Saturday with a 30.2 career whiff rate in the majors and a 26.1% rate this season. Young\u2019s home run was the fifth hit this season against his slider or curveball; he allowed five homers total against those pitches in 167 \u2153 innings in 2024.<\/p>\n

Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n

Blanco did induce six whiffs on 17 swings against his changeup Saturday while throwing it on 42% of his 59 pitches. Espada said he believes \u201cthe pitches are there\u201d for Blanco, but he needs \u201cmore consistency getting away from the heart of the plate.\u201d<\/p>\n

His standing in the rotation may require it, though other options for a depth-starved roster are limited. Javier had his turn skipped, as well, this series. Mike Burrows will make at least one more rehab start in his recovery from elbow neuritis<\/a>. Imai\u2019s inconsistency looms.<\/p>\n

Hunter Brown will take the mound for Sunday\u2019s series finale against the Mariners, with Houston holding a two-game AL West lead over the Rangers and five games over Seattle. An off day awaits Monday, then more decisions on how to deploy its arms.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"While Hayden Wesneski had his roughest outing Saturday in four starts since returning from Tommy John surgery, he…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":407954,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[56,58,57],"class_list":["post-407953","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-houston","tag-houston","tag-houston-headlines","tag-houston-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/407953","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=407953"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/407953\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/407954"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=407953"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=407953"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=407953"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}