Houston Astros Could Be Inclined to Pursue Tigers All-Star

The Houston Astros Could Trade for Tigers All-Star Pitcher Michael Lorenzen Before Trade Deadline

Brad Wakai | Jul 26, 2023

Houston Astros Could Be Inclined to Pursue Tigers All-Star /

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On Monday, the Houston Astros and Texas Rangers started their heavyweight fight for supremacy in the AL West.

It's gone the way of the Astros early, winning the series' first two games to inch one game back of the division leading Rangers. They have now won three games in a row and seven out of their last 10.

Even during this run of form, general manager Dana Brown has not wavered on what his targets are for the team before the MLB Trade Deadline.

He's been clear that he would like to upgrade their starting pitching and bullpen depth as Houston gets ready for another deep playoff run.

The player on the Detroit Tigers getting all the trade headlines has been Eduardo Rodriguez, however, the Astros are more interested in the Tigers' All-Star Michael Lorenzen.

The Athletics' Eno Sarris wrote an article about why that could be the case.

He mentions Houston's pitching staff has the best Stuff+ in the MLB according to FanGraphs. Out of the potentially available starters at the deadline, Lorenzen is one of eight with above-average stuff according to those metrics.

Max Bay, one of the creators of Stuff+, is now employed by the Astros. He could be advising Brown that Lorenzen fits perfectly into the staff that they've built.

The right hander is also entering free agency after the season, so it wouldn't cost a lot to get him from Detroit.

Without a farm system flush with prospects like they've had in the past, this would be an ideal trade partner. Brown mentioned they'd prefer to use their big league players to get a deal done, which could be the case for a rental player.

Lorenzen has experience as both a starter and coming out of the bullpen, so he could fit into any role that the team needs going forward.

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Published Jul 26, 2023

BRAD WAKAI

Brad Wakai graduated from Penn State University with a degree in Journalism. While an undergrad, he did work at the student radio station covering different Penn State athletic programs like football, basketball, volleyball, soccer and other sports. Brad currently covers the Philadelphia Phillies, Chicago Cubs and Houston Astros for Sports Illustrated/FanNation. He is also the Lead Contributor for Nittany Lions Wire of Gannett Media where he continues to cover Penn State athletics. Brad is the host of the sports podcast I Said What I Said, discussing topics across the NFL, College Football, the NBA and other sports. You can follow him on Twitter: @bwakai