Tarik Skubal: The Astros Want to Stay in the Running

As we know, Tarik Skubal has a real chance of being traded within the next month. The Tigers pitcher is likely to be the biggest catch on a market that, as usual, will favor teams looking to sell pitchers.

Because every good team needs starting pitchers at the trade deadline… especially if that pitcher is Tarik Skubal.

Of course, we often talk about the usual suspects (the Dodgers and Yankees, among others) as teams to watch. But this morning, Bob Nightengale mentioned another team that could throw its hat into the ring.

And we're talking about the Houston Astros, who clearly see an opportunity to capitalize on a division—and the American League in general—that isn't the most competitive.

Because even with their 44-47 record, the Astros are only 2.5 games out of first place in their division. That means they're still very much in the thick of the race.

And in fact, it makes sense that the Astros are looking for reinforcements on the mound. Hunter Brown is excellent, and even though Peter Lambert and Spencer Arrighetti are doing well, they aren't necessarily sure things.

The Tatsuya Imai experiment hasn't been a huge success so far, while Mike Burrows and Lance McCullers Jr. (who is injured) are also having rough seasons.

In addition to Skubal, Nightengale mentions that the Astros also intend to be in the running for Sonny Gray's services. Gray is having a great season in Boston, and the Red Sox are expected to be sellers by the trade deadline.

But whether it's Skubal or Gray, the Astros clearly believe their offense is strong enough to justify investing in a top-tier starting pitcher at the trade deadline. And given the season Yordan Alvarez is having, that's a plausible theory.

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