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Ronel Blanco

Astros Notes: Brantley, Maton, Blanco

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Michael Brantley’s long absence from the Astros lineup could finally be nearing its end, as GM Dana Brown told Robert Ford of 790 AM radio today (hat tip to Matt Kawahara of the Houston Chronicle) that Brantley will visit the team Monday in Boston when the Astros begin a series with the Red Sox.  After what would presumably be a final checkup with team doctors, Brantley would “then hopefully…maybe, potentially, in the lineup by Tuesday.  We’re feeling really good about him coming back,” Brown said.

Brantley’s last big league game took place on June 26, 2022, as shoulder problems eventually required a surgery that cost Brantley the rest of the season and a chance to participate in Houston’s run to the World Series title.  Initially, Brantley was expected to be ready for Opening Day, though a need for a more gradual build pushed his target date to around the start of May.  Unfortunately, a pair of setbacks kept delaying matters, but things finally seem to be going fairly smoothly for Brantley during his current minor league rehab assignment.  Over seven games with Triple-A Round Rock, Brantley has a fantastic 1.010 OPS in 27 plate appearances, hinting that he can still deliver at the plate when healthy.

Brown said the Astros will gradually ease Brantley back into action, as a part-time role with several off-days built into his workload should hopefully keep the bothersome shoulder in good condition.  Brantley has been regularly playing left field at Triple-A, so while the Astros are likely to give him a good chunk of DH at-bats, it doesn’t look like he’ll be limited to just a bat-only role.

Houston is fighting both the Rangers and Mariners in a three-pronged AL West battle, and the upcoming series in Boston carries added importance since the Red Sox are in the wild card hunt.  Between this crowded postseason picture, the Astros could still finish anywhere from a first-round bye as the AL West champ to missing the playoffs altogether.  It might be a lot to expect Brantley to resume his previous All-Star form after such a long layoff, but if he can post anything close to his old numbers, that’s still a big help to an already potent lineup.

Though it’ll still be at least a day before Brantley’s potential return, the Astros made an addition to the roster today, as Phil Maton was activated from the 15-day injured list.  Right-hander Ronel Blanco was optioned to Triple-A in the corresponding move, and as the Athletic’s Chandler Rome noted (via X), Blanco has now hit the maximum number of five minor league options in a single season.  If Blanco is recalled and the Astros wanted to eventually send him back to the minors, they would first need to expose the righty to waivers.

Maton hasn’t pitched since August 11, when Eduardo Escobar drilled a line drive up the middle into Maton’s throwing elbow.  Fortunately, there wasn’t any damage besides a bruise and some soreness, so Maton was able to return after the minimum 15 days.  The veteran reliever is enjoying a nice season, with a 3.04 ERA over 53 1/3 innings and some of the best soft-contact numbers and spin rates of any pitcher in baseball.

Quick Hits: Astros, Santana, Pagan, Muncy, Miller

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The Astros don’t have an off-day until June 12, so the team had been considering moving to a six-man rotation to help keep their starters fresh during this busy stretch of the schedule.  However, manager Dusty Baker told reporters (including the Houston Chronicle’s Danielle Lerner) that the team might be forced to stick with a five-man alignment just due to a lack of available starting depth, since prospect Forrest Whitley has been placed on the Triple-A injured list due to a right lat strain.  Whitley was the team’s top option for a spot start or two, and now Ronel Blanco might be the next candidate if Houston does indeed opt for a sixth starter.

Jose Urquidy and Lance McCullers Jr. aren’t expected back until around the All-Star break, while Luis Garcia’s season has already been ended by Tommy John surgery.  The injury situation has left the Astros short on starting pitching, and Whitley’s lat strain has again delayed his MLB debut.  Once one of the sport’s top prospects, Whitley’s minor league career has been interrupted by a 50-game PED suspension in 2018, and by a Tommy John surgery that cost him the entire 2021 season.

More on other injury situations that arose from today’s games…

  • Carlos Santana left during the sixth inning of the Pirates’ 6-3 loss to the Mariners today due to what the Bucs described as lumbar spine muscular tightness.  It would certainly seem like Santana will miss a couple of games to recovery, and a trip to the injured list is possible if his back problem doesn’t subside.  Connor Joe is the likeliest candidate for first base duty in Santana’s absence, but Pittsburgh might now be facing a depth problem at first base since Ji-Man Choi isn’t eligible to return from the 60-day IL until at least mid-July.
  • Twins reliever Emilio Pagan faced only one batter in today’s 3-0 loss to the Blue Jays before departing due to a left hip flexor strain.  Both Pagan and manager Rocco Baldelli expressed hope that an IL stint wasn’t necessary, with Pagan telling the Minneapolis Star Tribune’s Jerry Zgoda and other reporters that “hopefully we caught it early enough, that I’m good to go in a day or two.  I think I’ll be ready to go tomorrow if need be.”
  • Max Muncy left today’s game with a cramp in his left hamstring, and the Dodgers infielder told MLB.com and other media that he has been dealing with cramps throughout the weekend.  Muncy will undergo an MRI to further examine the issue, but for now, he is day to day.  Between a scorching-hot April and then a big slump for much of May, Muncy is still hitting .208/.340/.530 over 203 plate appearances this season, and he belted his 17th home run before his early exit today.
  • X-rays were negative on Owen Miller’s right forearm, after the Brewers infielder was removed as a precautionary measure after being hit by a pitch in today’s game.  Manager Craig Counsell told Curt Hogg of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel and other reporters that Miller is day to day, and could be back for the team’s next game on Tuesday (Monday is an off-day for the Brew Crew).  Miller’s hot bat has earned him more playing time, and after collecting two more hits today, Miller is slashing .330/.371/.513 over 124 PA.

Astros Promote J.P. France

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TODAY: France was officially called up, with the Astros sending right-hander Ronel Blanco to Triple-A in the corresponding move.

MAY 5: The Astros are calling up right-hander J.P. France, reports Mark Berman of Fox 26. He is expected to start Saturday’s game against the Mariners, per Chandler Rome of The Athletic, which will be his major league debut. He’s on the 40-man roster but will require a corresponding move to get him on the active roster.

Now 28, France was selected by the Astros in the 14th round of the 2018 draft and signed for a $1K bonus. He’s since outperformed that modest draft position with some strong work as a swingman in the minors. In 2021, he split his time between Double-A and Triple-A, throwing 114 innings over 18 starts and seven relief appearances. He posted a 3.79 ERA with a strong 32.2% strikeout rate but a 10.7% walk rate. Last year, he was back in the swing role but exclusively in Triple-A. He made 15 starts and 19 relief appearances, posting a 3.90 ERA in 110 2/3 innings. He struck out 28.3% of batters faced but walked 10.6% of them.

He would have been eligible to be selected in the most recent Rule 5 draft, but the Astros added him to their roster in November to ensure that didn’t happen. Baseball America then put him on their list of top 30 prospects in the organization for the first time, giving him the #21 slot coming into this year. Their report notes that he doesn’t have overpowering stuff but relies on unpredictability, willing to throw any of his five pitches at any time to keep hitters off balance.

He’s been back in Triple-A to start this year, with three starts and a couple relief appearances. The walks are still an issue, coming in at a 14.3% clip so far this year, but he’s also struck out 33.8% of opponents and gotten grounders on 53.8% of balls in play for a 2.33 ERA.

The Astros came into the year with a strong rotation, even while allowing Justin Verlander to depart for the Mets. The on-paper group would have been Lance McCullers Jr., Framber Valdez, Luis Garcia, Cristian Javier and José Urquidy. Unfortunately, McCullers was shut down in spring with arm soreness and still doesn’t seem close to a return, not having begun a rehab assignment yet. That pushed the top depth starter, Hunter Brown, into the rotation to start the year. More recently, the club saw both Garcia and Urquidy hit the injured list in the past week, further depleting the rotation.

The timelines on those recent injuries are still a little murky but the club will have to proceed for at least a couple weeks with just Valdez, Javier and Brown remaining from their season opening rotation. France will come up and make at least one start to help out. Brandon Bielak is also with the club and threw 75 pitches of long relief on Monday, perhaps allowing him to factor in at some point. Forrest Whitley and Shawn Dubin are also on the 40-man and could be options as well.

Each MLB Team’s Players On WBC Rosters

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The World Baseball Classic is returning this year, the first time since 2017. The quadrennial event was supposed to take place in 2021 but was scuttled by the pandemic, now returning after a six-year absence. Rosters for the tournament were announced today and those can be found at this link. Here is a breakdown of which players from each MLB team are set to take participate. Quick caveat that this list is fluid and might be changed as more information becomes available.

Without further ado…

Angels

Astros

Athletics

Blue Jays

Braves

Brewers

Cardinals

Cubs

Diamondbacks

Dodgers

Giants

Guardians

Marlins

Mariners

Mets

Nationals

Orioles

Padres

Phillies

Pirates

Rangers

Rays

Red Sox

Reds

Rockies

Royals

Tigers

Twins

White Sox

Yankees

Astros Select Ronel Blanco, Designate Tyler Ivey For Assignment

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The Astros set their Opening Day roster Thursday, announcing that they’ve selected the contract of right-hander Ronel Blanco and designated righty Tyler Ivey for assignment in order to open a spot on the 40-man roster. Houston also placed Lance McCullers Jr. (forearm strain), Jake Meyers (recovering from shoulder surgery) and Taylor Jones (lower back injury) on the 10-day injured list.

Once he appears in a game, Blanco will make his MLB debut at the age of 28.  He spent all of last year at Triple-A, punching out 31.7% of hitters while walking 8.9% with a 40.4% groundball rate.  According to Chandler Rome of Baseball America, Blanco would have been a “virtual lock” to be selected in the Rule 5 draft, had that event not been canceled.  Rome notes that Blanco, who was signed out of the Dominican Republic six years ago for $5,000, surprisingly beat out several pitchers with MLB experience to make the Astros’ opening day bullpen.  Houston’s 10-man crew also includes Ryan Pressly, Ryne Stanek, Hector Neris, Phil Maton, Blake Taylor, Pedro Baez, Rafael Montero, Bryan Abreu, and Cristian Javier.

Ivey, 26 next month, made his MLB debut with the Astros last May in a spot start against the Rangers.  A few weeks afterward, his season ended due to a nerve issue in his elbow.  At that time, Ivey admitted in an illuminating story by Rome for the Houston Chronicle that he’d been pitching through pain since 2019, concealing it from the team to maintain his shot at reaching the Majors.  The injury turned out to be thoracic outlet syndrome, which the righty dealt with via rehab rather than surgery.

The Astros had optioned Ivey to Triple-A on March 24th.  Baseball America assigned Ivey a 50 grade as a prospect, explaining that he’s “a potential middle-to-back-of-the-rotation starter candidate if he can stay healthy.”  Having ranked as the Astros’ seventh-best prospect, it seems likely Ivey will be claimed off waivers by another organization.

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