Houston Astros Viewed As Potential Landing Spot for Marlins' Young Ace

The Houston Astros could be in the market for one of the top available starting pitchers.

Mar 1, 2024; Clearwater, Florida, USA; Miami Marlins pitcher Jesus Luzardo (44) throws a pitch in / Jonathan Dyer-USA TODAY Sports

The Houston Astros slow start has commonly been attributed to one issue, the health of their starting rotation. They currently have four starters on the injured list after Justin Verlander is set to make his return.

Bleacher Report's Tim Kelly lists the Astros as one of the teams expected to go after a highly coveted arm out of Miami.

Jesus Luzardo is coming off of two great seasons for the Miami Marlins and was expected to be able to bring in a large prospect haul for the team if they decided to trade him. He's off to a cold start to say the least in 2024, but that might be a good thing for Houston.

The Houston farm system is not packed to the brim with exciting prospects, but they do have bats.

David Schoenfield of ESPN recently listed Brice Matthews as their top trade piece. The 2023 first round pick had a great college career and could be an intriguing piece for rebuilding teams.

Luzardo's recent struggles are only making him more affordable for Houston, if they do decide that they want to take the risk on him getting back to where he was for the last couple of seasons.

His ERA has ballooned to 7.65 in his first four games this season, with his starts looking worse and worse. Maybe it's a change of scenery that he needs to turn things around.

Verlander coming back is a huge boost for the staff, assuming the 41-year-old is still pitching at a high level. The emergence of Ronel Blanco has also been a good sign for the club.

Outside of that, it hasn't been promising. The team might not be able to afford waiting for the staff to get healthy as a 6-14 start does not give them very much leeway.