An Astros-Marlins trade to give Josh Hader the bullpen support he needs

At one point in the year, the season seemed to be a lost cause for the Houston Astros. Everything was going wrong. But thankfully they play in the horrid AL West, so even sitting seven games under .500, their season is far from over. They're not the type of team to roll over and die anyway.

But Houston needs bullpen help, terribly. They rank fifth-worst in the league in bullpen ERA, ahead of the Athletics, Angels, Giants and White Sox -- not good company to be in down there.

The issue in their bullpen isn't talent. It's depth. Their top-end relievers are solid, but they need more of that. Houston could look to the Marlins, who appear to be entering a fire sale of their players, to steal away their closer and add him to this struggling Astros bullpen.

An Astros-Marlins trade that adds depth to the Houston bullpen by way of Tanner Scott

Josh Hader, the Astros star closer, is one of the best lefty relievers in baseball. Tanner Scott, the Marlins closer, is also one of the best lefty relievers in all of baseball. Imagine the two on the same team.

That's exactly the dream that the Astros could turn into a reality if they get a bit aggressive with the Marlins soon. Miami has already shown the willingness to trade, and trade early, by moving Luis Arraez to San Diego already.

Trading for Tanner Scott would be quite simple, for the most part. A team could part ways with one of their mid-range pitching prospects in exchange for half a season of one of the league's better southpaw closers.

That's what this trade proposes with the Astros getting Scott in exchange for their sixth and 16th-ranked prospects in Zach Cole and Andrew Taylor.

Cole is already playing in Double-A and is close to MLB-ready. At 23 years old, he's the sixth-ranked prospect in a weak Astros farm system. However, he can rake, as he's slashing .288/.382/.458 across all levels this season.

Taylor is a fastball heavy pitcher that needs to learn the ability to truly pitch as he works his way up the minor leagues. He has incredible talent, but his fastball is his get-ahead and his out pitch. Developing a true out pitch could help him turn the corner as he develops.

Houston could really use this trade. It creates a dominant backend of baseball games, where even when they're tied, they have a reliable arm to go to. They need better bullpen depth. Replacing one of the fringe MLB arms with a closer like Tanner Scott would be a huge upgrade and Houston should jump on the chance before other teams can blow the Marlins away.