Ronel Blanco was optioned to Triple-A after giving up five runs in relief Saturday. (Jason Fochtman/Houston Chronicle)
The Houston Astros optioned Ronel Blanco to Triple-A Sugar Land after Saturday's game against the Seattle Mariners, sending down the right-hander they hoped would help stabilize their rotation. Blanco threw four relief innings, allowing five runs, in the Astros' 10-5 loss to Seattle on Saturday. It marked his fifth outing since returning from elbow surgery. He had a 7.71 ERA in 23 ⅓ innings. Blanco, a fixture of the Houston rotation in 2024, had surgery last June to repair his ulnar collateral ligament and flexor tendon. The Astros expected the returns of Blanco and Hayden Wesneski could bolster their rotation in this second half, with the decision not to add pitching at the trade deadline reflecting that hope. In his first four starts back, Blanco compiled a 6.98 ERA, completing at least five innings just once. He moved to the bullpen this week and on Saturday allowed seven hits and five runs across four innings against the Mariners. "Just missed out over the plate too much," manager Joe Espada said Saturday night. "A ton of strikes, which that's what he does, and it was nice to see because he'd been kind of struggling with a few walks in his last few outings … Just kind of creating more swing-and-miss, I think we need that out of Blanco." Optioning Blanco underscores the tenuous state of Houston's rotation. The Astros recalled reliever Miguel Ullola from Triple-A Sugar Land to replace Blanco on the active roster Sunday. They did not announce starters for the first two games of their upcoming series against the Angels, which begins Tuesday. Peter Lambert is scheduled to pitch the finale of that series on five days' rest. This is a developing story and will be updated. Subscribe There’s more to Houston with the Chronicle. Subscribe today for just 25¢. This article originally published at Houston Astros send Ronel Blanco to Triple-A Sugar Land, recall Miguel Ullola.