The Houston Astros have one of the most formidable 1-2 starting pitching combinations in all of baseball, with Justin Verlander and Gerrit Cole dominating opposing hitters all year. But the rest of Houston's starting rotation has been a mystery.

Free agent signee Wade Miley has been effective (3.18 ERA in 21 starts), but Collin McHugh, Corbin Martin and Framber Valdez were all disappointing in their stints as starting pitchers.

Considering the Astros were not able to re-sign Charlie Morton in free agency and had already lost Lance McCullers Jr. for the season after he underwent Tommy John surgery, Houston has not gotten the necessary contributions from the back end of the rotation. With Brad Peacock also out until sometime in August, the Astros are looking to make a splash at the trade deadline.

Although Houston had shown interest in New York Mets starter Noah Syndergaard, Ken Rosenthal ofThe Athletic reports the team no longer appears to be in on Syndergaard because of their unwillingness to part with outfield prospect Kyle Tucker:

• The Astros backed off Syndergaard partly because of their reluctance to lose Kyle Tucker, who looms as a piece of their future outfield, with Michael Brantley, Josh Reddick and George Springer free agents after 2020.

Although the Mets have shown a concerted interest in dealing Syndergaard, they are still intent on setting a high price for his services.

Tucker was ranked as the No. 2 prospect in Houston's system prior to the start of the 2019 season, and he has hit 26 homers in Triple-A this season to go along with 22 stolen bases and a .902 OPS.

The Astros may look to pivot toward acquiring another Mets pitcher — Zack Wheeler — or gauge the price tag of the likes of Marcus Stroman or Mike Minor. One tradable piece to watch could be outfielder Derek Fisher.