Former MLB Exec Shares His Favorite Target for Astros Ahead of Trade Deadline

The Houston Astros have caught fire in recent weeks despite some major obstacles to overcome.

Their pitching staff has been decimated by injuries, with Spencer Arrighetti, Ronel Blanco and Hayden Wesneski all being sidelined.

Arrighetti is at least going to come back this year, but the other two both underwent season-ending procedures on their elbow.

In the lineup, they have been without star designated hitter Yordan Alvarez, who hasn’t played since May 2 and was diagnosed with a fracture in his hand earlier this month.

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With just over a month until the MLB trade deadline, the Astros should be very active in seeking upgrades to keep their playoff streak alive.

Adding pitching depth is near the top of their to-do list since the team needs to find more capable producers behind their dominant ace duo of Framber Valdez and Hunter Brown.

But in the opinion of Jim Bowden of The Athletic (subscription required), the biggest need for Houston is a left-handed hitter.

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It would be hard to argue against that when taking a look at their current roster.

Without Alvarez, more often than not, the Astros do not have a single left-handed hitter in their starting lineup. They are too unbalanced, making it easier for their opponents to match up against them by stacking right-handed pitchers to take advantage of splits.

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Luckily for Houston, there should be several left-handed hitters who are available.

Who should be their No. 1 target?

Bowden shared that his favorite for the team is Brandon Lowe of the Tampa Bay Rays.

“The Astros could use another left-handed hitter in their lineup ... Lowe’s contract includes an $11.5 million team option for 2026, so the Astros could control him for two postseason runs. Tampa Bay always needs to get younger and is always open to trading players, like Lowe, when they near free agency,” the former MLB executive wrote.

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He would provide the Astros with some much-needed pop from the left side of the plate, hitting 13 home runs and nine doubles through 260 plate appearances. His average exit velocity of 91.8 mph and hard-hit rate of 45.7% are both very encouraging.

An added bonus, he would fill a huge hole in the team’s lineup, killing two birds with one stone.

Lowe could take over as the everyday second baseman, a spot that has provided Houston with zero offensive production between Brendan Rodgers and Mauricio Dubon.

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