This year's Trade Deadline will be the first for Astros general manager Dana Brown, who was hired not long before the start of Spring Training. Brown met with reporters prior to Tuesday's game at Minute Maid Park to discuss some of the Astros' strategy prior to the Aug. 1 Deadline:
Q: How are trade talks going right now? Do you see things heating up a little bit?
A: We're in touch with almost every club, you know, particularly the guys that are out of the race. We've been talking to them quite a bit. We just don't know at this point. It's tough to tell. I can't disclose how close we are with other clubs, but right now we just don't know how it's going to play out. There's so many buyers and there's few sellers. But we are active.
Q: Are you optimistic?
A: Yeah, very optimistic. It could potentially cost you prospects and that's one of the things that we have to monitor closely. Do you want to mortgage the future for a rental? That's something that we have to look at as an organization and a front office. Is it worth it?
Q: What's your level of concern with some of the workloads of your relief pitchers and does that shape your priorities into the Deadline?
A: As I mentioned, our bullpen has worked their tail off this entire year. When you lose three pitchers in your rotation, it's going to cause your bullpen to work a little harder. They've answered the bell. They're one of the reasons why we are where we are right now. And so, if we can get them a little bit of help down the stretch, that would be important. So that's one of our targets.
Q: Do you have a deep enough farm system to be in the market for controllable talent, or will you guys mainly focus on rentals?
A: We have enough prospects to go get controllable [players]. It's just that the price tag early on is so high so you have to play the waiting game. But sometimes if you wait too long, another club may step up and give them more prospects. It's a back-and-forth type of thing, so hopefully we can get it done without giving up too much.
Q: Is a controllable starter preferable because you will have two guys in Luis Garcia and Lance McCullers Jr. next year that at least won't start the season as part of your rotation?
A: If you can get a controllable starter, that's great. It's not always available. You may have to deal with a rental. That's just the nature of the business. You have so many guys that are buying and everyone needs starting pitching. A lot of clubs we're talking to, they all need starting pitching. The clubs that are contending, they need starting pitching. Even some of the clubs that are in first place still need starting pitching. It's really difficult in this market.
Q: How involved has Astros owner Jim Crane been in some of the meetings for the Trade Deadline and what has he told you about marching orders?
A: Yeah, there's no marching orders. The only involvement he's had is what I've kept him in the loop on. He's allowing me to run the team and given me the steering wheel and said, 'Hey, this is your job, get it done. Just keep me posted as to what's going on,' and I've kept him posted. We've had conversations. … He's pretty much given me the steering wheel and said, 'Hey, this is your gig, so get it done.'
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