September 1 brings the roster expansion every MLB club gets to use, and for the Astros that usually means one extra pitcher and one extra position player joining the mix. The expectation around the club had been pretty straightforward: Mike Burrows would be the arm getting the call.
Burrows is lined up to pitch on five days’ rest today, which would have made him available to start against the Chicago White Sox. At Triple-A Sugar Land, he has been trending in the right direction lately, giving up just 3 earned runs over 13.1 innings while striking out 15.
Even though he hasn’t made it through five full innings in any of his starts - his outings have gone 4.1, 4.2, and 4.1 innings - the overall production has still been encouraging. Over those 13.1 innings, he has allowed only 11 hits and 5 walks.
The only two home runs he gave up came in Las Vegas, in a game played in 104-degree heat at a park that is already known as a launching pad in the very hitter-friendly PCL.
Instead, Ronel Blanco is the name that has surfaced, and that choice raises obvious questions. Blanco has been in rough shape since coming back from Tommy John surgery, and his issues didn’t stop after his August 16 demotion to Triple-A.
In his most recent outing, which came after Burrows’ latest start in Vegas, Blanco was hit hard for 10 earned runs in just 2.1 innings. He gave up three home runs, and his four-seam velocity fell to 91.1 mph.
That kind of drop should be a major warning sign for the Astros’ front office. Pushing a pitcher through a clear velocity decline rarely ends well, and the source of concern is impossible to ignore given what happened last season with Luis Garcia. Houston kept running Garcia out there despite an obvious velocity dip, publicly suggested the stuff would come back, and Garcia ultimately needed another surgery.
Against that backdrop, sending Blanco back out after a disaster like that makes little sense. Rewarding a pitcher for allowing 10 earned runs in 2.1 innings is hard to square, and there is no real case to be made that Blanco is the better option than Burrows right now. The roster move should be about putting the best arm in the best spot, and on the evidence available here, Burrows is the clear choice.
In Other News...
Astros Have A September Roster Decision Fans Should Watch Closely
September always brings a little roster maneuvering, and for the Astros, the move to a 28-man club on Sept. 1 opens the door to add some help for the final month. The front office has a few interesting names to consider from Triple-A, where Miguel Ullola, Cavan Biggio and Trenton Brooks have all put together strong stretches that could make them useful in different ways.
Ullola gives Houston another pitching option, while Biggio and Brooks bring the kind of versatility that can matter when depth gets thin and matchups start dictating decisions. With the stretch run ahead and every game carrying extra weight, the Astros will have to decide which minor league performers are most ready to translate that recent production into a useful September role. [Read more 🡒]
Astros September Push Could Come Down To One Carlos Correa Update
The Astros head into September with the AL West lead in hand, but the next few weeks hardly look comfortable. Houston has 24 games left, and nine of them come against teams already positioned in the playoff race, which puts a premium on getting steady production from the core group that has carried the club this far. Yordan Alvarez, Framber Valdez, AJ Blubaugh, Jose Altuve and Carlos Correa all loom as important pieces in what could be a defining stretch.
Correa is the name that hangs over the month most prominently, because his status still carries some uncertainty as he moves toward a scheduled medical checkup tied to his ankle surgery. For an Astros team trying to protect a division lead while navigating a demanding schedule, any update on his availability could shape how the final month unfolds. The bigger picture is straightforward enough: Houston has put itself in position, but September will say a lot about whether that position holds. [Read more 🡒]
Astros Got An Unlikely Offensive Boost They May Really Need
Houston kept its grip on the AL West by getting unexpected offense in a 6-3 win over the White Sox, with Nelson Velzquez and Cam Smith delivering the kind of timely hits that can change the tone of a game. Peter Lambert gave the Astros a workable start, lasting 4 2/3 innings while allowing three runs and striking out six, and the lineup did enough damage to make sure Chicago never fully got back into it.
Velzquez provided the biggest swing of the night with a go-ahead two-run homer in the fourth, a jolt that helped turn a close game in Houstons favor. Smith then added a two-run double in the next inning to widen the gap, a useful reminder for the Astros that production can come from places they may not have been counting on as the season pushes deeper into its stretch run. [Read more 🡒]