Subscribe
Follow Us
For most teams, a 52-42 start to the season would be satisfactory. Not the Houston Astros. Coming off their fourth World Series appearance and second World Series title in six years, the Astros expected to once again be among the cream of the crop in the American League. Instead, the Astros are barely holding down a wild card spot, and a strong showing by the Texas Rangers means that Houston only sits second in the AL West.
Numerous long-term injuries have been hand-cuffed the pitching staff, while slow first halves from many of the Astros' top hitters have also hindered the club. All signs point to some MLB trade deadline acquisitions in Houston. Here are some sneaky targets the Astros could consider.
3 sneaky MLB trade deadline targets for Astros to consider
Luis Castillo (SP), Seattle Mariners
With star pitchers members Luis Garcia and Lance McCullers out for the season, plus key rotation member Jose Urquidy out since April, youngsters Hunter Brown, J.P. France, and Brandon Bielak have all performed admirably for the Astros, posting a combined 3.78 ERA this year across 39 starts. But can the club trust these inexperienced hurlers down the stretch?
Luis Castillo would be a difficult acquisition for the Astros, as the Cy Young-level pitcher is under contract through 2028 in Seattle, but the Mariners have the young pitching depth to replace him in Bryan Woo and Bryce Miller. Seattle is also in desperate need of a boost offensively, as the club's .231 batting average is tied for third-worst in Major League Baseball. Despite being divisional rivals, the Astros and Mariners could work out a trade that is mutually beneficial for their playoff pushes in 2023.
Griffin Canning (SP), Los Angeles Angels
Another intradivisional trade? Now that is sneaky. The Angels are slowly sliding back in the AL West, losing 11 of their last 14 contests, and may well enter sell mode very soon. The Angels rotation has largely been forgotten about outside of Shohei Ohtani, but Griffin Canning has quietly put together a nice run of starts over the last two months.
During this stretch, the right-hander has a 3.58 ERA and a 4/1 strikeout-to-walk ratio. If Griffin Canning can figure out how to keep the ball in the park (10 home runs allowed in that nine-start span), he will be a useful piece in the Astros rotation as the club looks to defend its World Series title.
Wandy Peralta (RP), New York Yankees
The Astros bullpen has been solid overall, posting a 3.77 ERA (ninth in MLB), but has struggled in two important facets: late-inning situations and depth. Outside of closer Ryan Pressley, the Astros have secured just seven saves in 18 opportunities. Plus, among Astros bullpen members with at least 10 relief appearances, only half of them possess a sub-4.00 ERA. By comparison, last year the Houston relief corps led MLB in ERA (2.80) and was second in save percentage.
The Yankees bullpen has faltered a bit as of late but still leads MLB with a stout 3.27 ERA. Clay Holmes and Michael King have the back end of the bullpen locked down, but New York — which is nine games back in the AL East — might be willing to part with some other relievers if it means it can strengthen an unusually weak batting order.
Lefty Wandy Peralta has a 2.48 ERA and an impressive 171 ERA+. The Astros are currently without a lefty reliever, and Peralta — who has secured four of five save opportunities for the Yanks — is worth a look.
