Does the Houston Astros ace deserve the first All-Star nod?

In recent years, the Houston Astros have often looked like an All-Star team, filling their roster with stars all over the diamond. Many of them were also from the country and became elite major league players after being drafted and developed by the Astros.

That’s unfortunately not the case this year, especially with a lot of Houston’s talent languishing on the injured list. But just because the Astros haven’t been very good this year doesn’t mean they don’t have good players.

There are the usual suspects like Jose Altuve, Kyle Tucker, Yordan Alvarez and Justin Verlander. But there’s also a surprising pitcher who came out of nowhere, becoming Houston’s ace and a potential All-Star.

Blanco was at his best Sunday, going seven hitless innings in a 4-1 win over the Detroit Tigers. He walked three and fanned eight, throwing 65 of his 94 pitches for strikes before manager Joe Espada denied him a chance to make history.

The 30-year-old right-hander has been nothing short of sensational for the Astros this season. Squeezed into the rotation by injuries, he sat out the Toronto Blue Jays in his season debut on April 1 and hasn’t looked back.

Blanco has allowed two runs or fewer in 10 of his 13 starts, going 7-2 with a 2.43 ERA, 0.97 WHIP, 2.5 WAR and nearly a strikeout per round. Houston is 10-3 when he pitches and 23-36 when he doesn’t.

The right-hander flourished in his first full season as a starter, becoming one of the best pitchers in baseball. Entering play Monday, he ranked among the top 10 in the American League in numerous categories, including ERA (seventh), pitching WAR (eighth), wins (seventh), WHIP (seventh) and success rate ( second). He was totally dominant.

Assuming he doesn’t collapse or get injured between now and next month’s Midsummer Classic in Arlington, Blanco absolutely deserves his first All-Star nod. His case keeps getting stronger with each start and he starts to look like the real deal.

Blanco has a tough task in his next scheduled start this weekend against the Baltimore Orioles, one of the best teams in baseball. If he can neutralize their powerful lineup, his All-Star credentials will be even better.