Dana Brown’s comments on Astros’ trade deadline plans were hopelessly optimistic

Everyone should view Dana Brown's trade deadline comments with skepticism and a big grain of salt.

Eric Cole

Washington Nationals v Houston Astros / Bob Levey/GettyImages

At this point, most sane people looking at the Houston Astros would agree that the 2024 season just isn't going to be their year. Between all the injuries they've had to deal with (including JP France now) and guys simply not performing the way they should, the Astros have one of the worst records in baseball at 13-24.

If the Astros had actually found a way to turn things around against the Yankees in this series, that would be one thing. However, New York destroyed them in the first two games and now most believe that the most likely outcome this season is that the Astros are far more likely to be sellers at the trade deadline than they are to be playoff contenders.

Don't tell that to Astros GM Dana Brown, though. Despite where the Astros are in the standings and every failure of the eye test that Houston has shown on the field, Brown was adamant when talking to the media that he doesn't envision Houston selling at the trade deadline this year and that he fully expects the Astros to turn things around.

Dana Brown doubles down on this Astros team despite having every reason not to

To be fair to Brown, it would be a pretty bad signal to the locker room if he went in front of a bunch of microphones and said that he was already open for business. It would also be a terrible place to start from a negotiating position perspective. Make no mistake about it, Brown isn't stupid and you can probably wager that he's already making trade deadline plans for who he could part with given the way the Astros are trending.

However, it is hard not to think of this season quickly turning into a referendum on Brown's tenure at the head of the front office. One cannot really blame Brown for the Jose Abreu contract debacle since he wasn't hired until a couple months after that move, but his trade for Justin Verlander and signing of Josh Hader don't look particularly great at the moment. Given that owner Jim Crane can't be fired, Brown could end up being a fall guy here.

For now, Brown and Astros fans just have to hope that his optimism proves to be correct. This is a roster with loads of talent on it. That said, that optimism seems to be misplaced at the moment and both Brown and manager Joe Espada's futures are among several Houston trade candidates whose time with Houston could be in jeopardy if the Astros can't start winning some games.

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Eric Cole

I started my career writing about baseball covering the Atlanta Braves for SB Nation's Talking Chop back in 2015 which has since been renamed Battery Power. After years of writing for those fine folks, I made the decision to take over as Site Expert at House That Hank Built before becoming a full-time MLB Staff Writer for FanSided in 2023. Along the way, I have been a guest on multiple ESPN radio affiliates as well as 680 The Fan and 92.9 The Game to discuss Braves baseball and especially Braves prospects and was a long-time host on the Battery Power podcast. These days, I continue to write about the Braves as well as covering the Astros, Padres, and Angels with particular expertise with minor league coverage, the MLB Draft, and bashing Anthony Rendon when possible. When I am not writing about or talking about baseball (which is seldom), I am an avid baseball card collector (Maddux and Soroka being my primary personal collections) and I also collect shark teeth. All other sports are mostly dead to me as my Bills have broken my heart too many times.