MLB trade deadline: What's ahead for the Astros? Which teams are going to sell? And what will David Stearns do with the Mets?

The MLB trade deadline is 10 days away.Here’s a smattering of thoughts, questions and rumblings from around the baseball world as we inch closer to the busiest transactional day of the season.The Astros are in a weird spotThe Houston Astros are not what they once were. Sure, pillars of that dynasty remain. Jose Altuve is still around; so, too, is Yordan Alvarez. But these Astros — four games under .500 with a minus-45 run differential — are not those Astros. Still, a three-game sweep of the Miami Marlins has pushed Houston back up the wild-card standings, back toward that poisoned chalice of being good enough for false hope.The overwhelming expectation around the industry is that the Astros, almost regardless of their record, will be buyers per usual. How close their record is to .500 come