Mets owner Steve Cohen scheduled a press conference this week to address the disappointing state of the team. Cohen revealed that the team would be open to being sellers at the trade deadline if the team had no chance to make the playoffs.

They recently paid down Eduardo Escobar's contract ($9.5 million) to league minimum to facilitate a trade to the Angels. With that in mind, would the Mets be open to trading either Justin Verlander or Max Scherzer if New York is out of playoff contention?

And if so, which pitcher would Astros fans rather have? Verlander seems like the obvious option considering his history with the club. But Scherzer is very appealing in his own right. He shut down the Astros recently, is younger than Verlander, and has a player option to opt out of his deal next year. Which might appeal to the Astros as Verlander's contract is guaranteed for the 2024 season.

Of course, Scherzer could elect to not opt out, which would leave the Astros on the hook for Scherzer's 2024 salary. Also, Max has a no-trade clause. But recently it was reported that he would consider waiving his no-trade clause for a good situation with a chance to compete for a championship.

Finally, if neither of the Mets pitchers are available, who are some options the Astros could have interest in with the trade deadline approaching?

Be sure to watch the full discussion above as we break it all down!

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