Houston Astros pitcher Ronel Blanco grabbed headlines earlier this MLB season after he threw a no-hitter. Blanco then grabbed headlines again this week, but for opposite and more dispiriting reasons.
During Tuesday night’s game between Blanco’s Astros and the Oakland Athletics, umpires checked Blanco for a foreign substance. The Astros hurler was caught red-handed and promptly got ejected. MLB then moved to suspend the Astros pitcher on Wednesday.
Blanco will serve a 10-game suspension, Chandler Rome reported.
Blanco is just the latest MLB pitcher to be suspended due to the league’s foreign substance policy. Last year, Padres pitcher Robert Suarez notably served a 10-game suspension after he committed a similar offense.
Prior to his suspension, Blanco pitched very well. Through 47.1 innings, he recorded a 4-0 record, a 2.09 ERA, and 45 strikeouts to 21 walks. That solid year thus far included his no-hitter the first of this MLB season, in early April. He’s posted a career ERA of 3.58 through 105.2 innings at the MLB level.
Of course, now that he will have to wear this suspension, that no-hitter may now come with a disclaimer. It was a very fun moment at the start of the season, but now could be soured. He’ll now have the ‘cheater’ label slapped on him. It really makes you wonder sometimes if it’s worth it, but such is life.