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The Houston Astros had the best one-two punch in their starting rotation for a good part of the season until Cristian Javier ran into some struggles in June.

While his last two starts have been a little more encouraging, Framber Valdez is also dealing with a bit of a slump himself. While it's nothing compared to what Javier has been through, Framber has given up at least four earned runs in three of his last five starts.

We certainly expect Framber to return to his former self, and be one of the best pitchers in baseball. But will that be enough to help the Astros chase down another championship? Even if Javier returns to his early season form, he hasn't been as dominant this year as he was in 2022.

He and Hunter Brown are pitching more innings this year than ever before. And it doesn't look like their workload will be any different moving forward.

So with that in mind, should the Astros trade for Justin Verlander to help with the playoff push and perhaps take some innings off Javier and Brown by implementing a 6-man rotation from time to time?

And take a look at JV's Twitter account, his location now includes Houston.

Photo via: Twitter/Screenshot

Don't miss the video above as we address the likelihood of the Astros trading for Verlander, and much more!

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What the Juan Soto deal means for Houston Astros championship window

How will Soto's massive contract impact the Astros?Composite Getty Image.

Over the weekend, the big domino finally fell with Juan Soto agreeing to a 15-year, $765 million megadeal with the New York Mets. Which means Alex Bregman and the other top free agents on the market should soon follow in short order.

In fact, we're already seeing reports from Rob Bradford of WEEI and USA Today’s Bob Nightengale claiming that the Red Sox and Yankees are “expected” to make a run at Bregman.

Soto heading to the National League certainly feels like a win for Astros fans, but that could change if missing out on Soto causes the Yankees to pry Breggy away from Houston.

We'll have to wait and see how this plays out before we get too excited. However, one thing is for sure, all the free agents on the market have to be thrilled about the size of Soto's deal. Not to mention Willy Adames' 7-year, $182 million deal with the Giants that could help Bregman's chances of receiving a more lucrative deal than the Astros reportedly offered him, 6- years, $154 million.

What's really eye-opening about Soto's contract is how it could impact Framber Valdez and Kyle Tucker, specifically Tucker. It's hard to imagine Tucker won't get an offer of at least $300 million, and at this point $400 million wouldn't surprise us.

Historically, the Astros don't trade their big name free agents before their contracts expire, but perhaps they should rethink that approach with King Tuck. If they won't even entertain a deal approaching $300 million, it might be worth taking a step back this year to replenish the farm system and focus on the team long-term.

Speaking of trades, the Astros are reportedly calling anyone who will listen about the availability of Ryan Pressly.

Don't miss the video above as we react to the Soto deal, share our thoughts on how it could impact the Astros championship window, and much more!

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