The Houston Astros didn’t begin the 2024 season in the way that they would have hoped. They were swept by the New York Yankees in their four-game opening series, and it’s quite a rarity to witness the Astros struggle. But in the fifth game of the season, the Astros stopped the bleeding thanks in large part to an epic performance from fifth starter Ronel Blanco, who has had himself quite a life-changing week.
Blanco, despite struggling immensely in 2023, could not have asked for a much better start to his second full season in the majors. The 30-year old blanked the Toronto Blue Jays in a 10-0 Astros win, throwing a no-hitter on 105 pitches while striking out seven (walking just two). Simply put, he was dominant, which seems rather par for the course for professional athletes who are coming off the birth of a child.
“I see it as a great blessing, a great blessing for me and my family. With the arrival of my daughter I see it as a life-changing experience, and I dedicate this to my family and my daughter,” Blanco said in Spanish, via ESPN.
Ronel Blanco is not someone MLB fans would think of when asked who’d throw the first no-hitter of the 2024 season. But the dad buff appears to be very real, ladies and gentlemen. Only time will tell, however, if Blanco will continue to be a quality starter for the Astros moving forward.
Ronel Blanco, a no-hitter out of nowhere
With the Astros at full strength, Ronel Blanco may not have gotten an opportunity to start and throw a no-hitter. Justin Verlander, José Urquidy, Lance McCullers Jr. and Luis Garcia are all on the Injured List, paving the way for Blanco to throw the best outing of his career to cap off one of the most memorable weeks a human being can have.
Blanco doesn’t have the greatest track record on the mound. He was signed by the Astros in 2016 to a measly $5,000 bonus as a 22-year old, which was much older than his peers in the international free agent market. He didn’t make his MLB debut until he was 22 years old, debuting as a relief pitcher in April 2022.
Ronel Blanco then did not make his first career MLB start until June 1, 2023, when he pitched 5.1 innings and allowed just two earned runs on seven hits, which was good enough to lead the Astros to a 5-2 win. Alas, he did not have much success afterwards, finishing 2023 with a 4.50 ERA with peripherals that imply that he should have had an even worse campaign.
But his journey off the field is an even more impressive story that shows how never giving up on one’s dream can pay off in a huge way.
Yet another Astros underdog success story
The Astros were able to pluck Framber Valdez and Cristian Javier from the depths of the pitching talent pool, and now, they have another success story in Ronel Blanco. According to Chandler Rome of The Athletic, Blanco did not pitch until he was 18 years old and he worked in a car wash before the Astros signed him in 2016.
Now, Blanco has etched his name on the list of immortalized pitchers who have thrown no-hitters. His big-league emergence may have taken a while, and it may have taken a few injuries for him to get this kind of opportunity, but now, he has all the runway in the world to cement himself as yet another unheralded quality piece for an Astros team that’s still looking to contend for a World Series trophy.
“It’s been a very long road traveled for me. A lot of ups, a lot of downs, a lot of falls, a lot of me getting back up. But I think all of that has been worth it for me to be able to get to this moment,” Blanco said.
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