Astros Disappointed Former MLB Exec Ahead of MLB Trade Deadline for One Reason

There was a lot that the Houston Astros did right ahead of the MLB trade deadline to have them feeling good heading into the final two months of the regular season.

Their lineup received some much-needed reinforcements with the additions of Carlos Correa, Ramon Urias and Jesus Sanchez.

Correa will be taking over at third base in place of the injured Isaac Paredes. Urias provides versatility with his ability to play all four infield spots, giving manager Joe Espada flexibility to mix and match depending on the opponent.

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Sanchez provides the team with the left-handed bat they were desperately looking for, helping balance out a lineup that has received the fewest at-bats this season from lefties.

With five players from their Opening Day lineup currently on the injured list, the Astros accomplished their goal of replenishing the lineup depth ahead of the MLB trade deadline.

However, there was one thing on their to-do list that they did not accomplish: acquiring a starting pitcher, which left Jim Bowden of The Athletic (subscription required) disappointed for Houston after the deadline cleared.

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“However, I also wanted the Astros to land a No. 3-type starter to slot behind Framber Valdez and Hunter Brown in their rotation for the playoffs — no dice,” the former MLB executive wrote.

The Astros have arguably the best one-two punch in baseball with those two atop their rotation, but beyond them, things get messy.

Houston currently has more than a complete MLB rotation on the sidelines with Hayden Wesneski and Ronel Blanco both having to undergo Tommy John surgery.

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They joined Spencer Arrighetti, who suffered a freak accident earlier in the season during batting practice, Brandon Walter, Lance McCullers Jr., Cristian Javier, Luis Garcia and J.P. France on the injured list.

Adding another starter to the mix would have been ideal, but it wasn’t meant to be.

It certainly wasn’t from a lack of trying, since the Astros were connected to Sandy Alcantara and Edward Cabrera of the Miami Marlins and Dylan Cease of the San Diego Padres.

Sometimes, teams simply cannot match up on a price, as it would be costly to acquire any of those three players.

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Instead of paying more than they were comfortable with, Houston is going to be betting on their players returning from injury being able to perform up to their capabilities.

Arrighetti is close to a return, and Javier reportedly isn’t far behind him.

Ryan Gusto and Colton Gordon have been holding the fort down admirably, and hopefully will continue to do so, with the Astros being at 11 different players starting a game this year and counting.

For more Astros news, head over to Astros On SI.