This rumored Astros-Padres trade involving Blake Snell and Josh Hader would have shocked the league.
Oh, to be a fly in Dana Brown's office.
To be a fly in any general manager's office on the day of the MLB trade deadline would be a curious experience. In this case, the Houston Astros' office may have been particularly thrilling, and the club may even have won the award of "Biggest Trade That Never Happened" in 2023.
Let's get right to it: did the Astros want to acquire Padres pitchers Blake Snell and Josh Hader ahead of the deadline?
Owner Jim Crane confessed that Houston was interested in a starter and a reliever on the Padres, and it doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out who those players could be. Amid a disappointing 2023 campaign, the Padres remained stubborn in their intentions to hold onto pitchers Blake Snell and Josh Hader, both of whom are set to hit free agency in the winter.
Pundits everywhere speculated that the Padres would at the very least be open to offers; after all, better to recoup some sort of value for their stars rather than see them possibly leave for nothing.
In this case of speculation, sometimes, the most obvious answer is the correct one.
Astros may have pursued Padres' Blake Snell, Josh Hader at deadline
We'd guess that insiders at the The Athletic and other sports sites would have a scoop on these rumors in the days following MLB trade deadline day, perhaps a packaged fallout on all the trades that almost were.
Had the Astros actually landed Snell and Hader, it would have been the gutsiest, ballsiest move of the summer, not to mention the most seismic during a day of mostly quiet rumblings. Eduardo Rodriguez blocked his deal to the Dodgers. The Yankees stood pat, save for one wee addition.
In fact, Houston was the club to land arguably the biggest fish, Mets pitcher Justin Verlander, but even that move felt expected, boring almost.
What would have been an electric shock to the heart — to Yankees fans, mostly — was seeing the Astros sacrifice their farm system to acquire one of the top starting pitchers and one of the top closers in the league. Snell has a league-best 2.50 ERA in 22 starts; Hader has a 0.90 ERA, the second-lowest mark of any closer, and also has 25 saves this season.
The ever-unpredictable Padres have in years past given their fans jump-scares at trade deadlines, but this season the tricks are staying in their sleeves. The Astros won't get to repeat that easily.