5 best trade chips the Astros have going into the trade deadline

The 2023 trade deadline is around a week away and the Houston Astros have positioned themselves as clear buyers. Houston has kept pace with the Rangers for the most part to start the second half, but they are going to need some help at the deadline to stay in the playoff hunt both in the AL West as well as the wild card race.

With all of the injuries in the Astros' rotation this season, starting pitching is a pretty clear need at the moment. Adding another power bat would be lovely plus every contending team could use some more bullpen depth. That isn't an insignificant shopping list at the deadline and that means Houston is going to have to be willing to pony up to have a chance at getting everything they need.

Here are 5 of the Astros' best trade chips at the trade deadline

Picking who to keep and who to trade is never easy, but the reality is that the Astros are going to have to give up some talent to get some in return. However, just because a player is on this list doesn't mean that they are completely expendable. Some players are higher end prospects that really should only be moved for top end talent that preferably comes with at least some team control.

Others are a bit more expendable that could be the center of trades for significant rentals. Before anyone gets too up in arms, it is highly unlikely that Houston will be able to make enough moves of note to actually end up losing all of these guys. These are just some of the Astros' best options to make deals work without causing too many other problems with their current roster.

Lets take a look at the Astros' best trade chips (within reason) they have available at the trade deadline.

Drew Gilbert

There will be plenty of folks upset that the mere suggestion of trading the Astros' highest ranking prospect, Drew Gilbert, but the Astros have to have the option to be aggressive at the deadline if the opportunity presents itself. Gilbert made short work of high-A this year and while he has struggled more in his first look at Double-A, most evaluators agree that he looks like a guy that should have a very well-rounded, high energy game that should allow him to be a significant contributor in the big leagues.

However, the Astros can't just hope that the ideal rental starter or power bat just falls in their laps as the quality options available there are pretty thin this year and are in high demand. To make a deal for good players with some additional team control like all of those rumored Dylan Cease connections, Gilbert is going to have to be on the table. The right deal may not present itself to warrant moving him and Houston should not force anything, but having Gilbert as a trade chip needs to be on the table.

Justin Dirden

Sellers at the deadline come in a lot of different forms. Some teams are truly rebuilding and are just looking to maximize the amount of long-term talent they want to get back in a given deal. However, there are others that may be out of the playoff hunt this year, but who are looking to quickly retool their roster to compete as soon as next season. The latter is where a guy like Justin Dirden could be particularly appealing.

Dirden is a outfield prospect that is already at Triple-A and while he has only posted a .789 OPS in Triple-A so far this season, he is coming off back-to-back seasons where he posted OPS-es north of .930. To get a deal done with team looking for near major league ready bats, Dirden is exactly the kind of power to all fields kind of guy that could get their attention.

One note here: the Astros could use a power bat at the deadline, so there is an argument for Houston to hang on to Dirden if they decide to move one of their existing outfielders (more on them in a second). If that is the case, the Astros have a lot of outfield depth in the minor leagues to deal from, although none are as close to big league ready as Dirden.