Astros' Rough Finish Ahead of All-Star Break Should Raise Trade Deadline Urgency

The Houston Astros surprised a ton of people with how strong of a start they had during the first half of the year given everything they lost both before and during the season.

Replacing two iconic faces of the franchise and best players in Alex Bregman and Kyle Tucker was always going to be difficult. Then, when they were hit with a rash of injuries throughout the year in the pitching staff and lineup, it would have been easy to understand if the Astros had faltered.

Instead, this is a team that is just two games off the best record in the American League and enters the All-Star break with a five-game lead in the division.

More News: Astros Select Xavier Neyens With Pick No. 21 in 2025 MLB Draft

If fans were told this is where the team would be at this point ahead of the season, it's safe to say many would have been thrilled.

Unfortunately, though, Houston was unable to finish the first half strong. And they closed out the last week on a poor note.

More News: Astros' Isaac Paredes Won't Compete in 2025 All-Star Game for This Reason

After sweeping the Los Angeles Dodgers on the road in dominant fashion, hopes were high that this Astros team was off to the races. But they followed that up with losing five of six, including a sweep at the hands of the Cleveland Guardians and a dropped series against their rival Texas Rangers.

In Major League Baseball, poor stretches are going to happen.

It's simply not avoidable.

With that being said, it's a tough way to go into several off days before the second half begins against the second-place Seattle Mariners this upcoming weekend.

Now that the calendar reads the middle of July, this means the trade deadline is coming in a couple of weeks. The way things went over the last two series, Houston must understand that, while it was just a rough patch, it also highlighted issues they need to address.

More News: MLB All-Star Break Could Not Have Come at Better Time for Astros

First, this is a team that is in as much need of starting pitching as anyone else in baseball due to injuries, but that much was already obvious.

It's the underperforming offense that was a real concern over the last several weeks as the return of designated hitter Yordan Alvarez got delayed again. The updated news surrounding Alvarez has been positive, however, he was supposed to be back months ago.

More News: Could Astros Solve Rotation Woes With Trade for Talented Rays Pitcher?

If the Astros are not certain he is going to be back, they need to go out and get a bat.

This is a deadline where teams are going to be more aggressive than usual due to the lack of separation at the top of baseball.

If Houston is not one of those aggressors, they could be passing on another chance to win or at least compete for yet another championship.

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