2. Trade for Sonny Gray
The Astros missed out on Jose Quintana, who was the most talked about pitcher on the trade market this season. However, Houston still has a chance to acquire the second most popular pitcher in trade speculation: Oakland A’s starter Sonny Gray.
An All-Star who finished third in the AL Cy Young voting in 2015, Gray has bounced back quite well from a disappointing 2016 campaign. In 14 starts this season, the 27-year-old has a 3.72 ERA and 3.46 FIP with 79 strikeouts in 84.2 innings. Gray has struck out 22.8 percent of the hitters he has faced thus far, which would be his best strikeout rate since his 12-game debut in 2013.
In addition to his good work on the mound this season, Gray is a hot commodity in the trade market because he is under team control through 2019. The A’s are also in a position to make a deal, having finished the first half with the most losses in the American League. The team is also apparently willing to make moves. The A’s have already traded relievers Sean Doolittle and Ryan Madson over the weekend.
The biggest obstacle to Houston getting a deal done is the fact that the A’s are division rivals. Because Gray is young and won’t be a free agent until 2020, Oakland would have to face their star right-hander often over the next two-plus seasons. That doesn’t mean the Astros won’t be able to swing such a deal, but the price might be higher than usual.
But after missing out on Quintana, and with the World Series in sight, Houston might be motivated enough to overpay for Gray.