HOUSTON — Hello, Astros fans. Not to paint with a broad brush, but it seems morale has improved since we started soliciting questions for this exercise.A three-game sweep at Wrigley Field afforded the Astros momentum they haven’t had all season. They’ve won six of nine games and will open a four-game series in Arlington, Texas, on Monday with a real chance to gain substantial ground in an awful American League West.Still, after Sunday’s 8-5 victory, FanGraphs gave Houston just a 13 percent chance to make the postseason. Twelve other American League teams have better odds, underscoring a deficit the Astros must still overcome and the minuscule margin for error with which they will play for the remainder of the season.Most of your questions — again, submitted before this weekend’s prosperity — centered on owner Jim Crane and his willingness to watch this team perform without taking any action. This weekend must’ve impressed an owner who is hard to satisfy, but he’s a difficult man to predict. Let’s get into some of your questions about the franchise’s long-term future.If the Astros don’t turn it around soon, which is unlikely, how long will Crane wait to make changes in the front office and at manager? — Tyler B.That’s difficult to discern, Tyler. Only Crane can give an accurate answer and he hasn’t taken questions since the team introduced Tatsuya Imai on Jan. 5. Given a chance that day to offer manager Joe Espada and general manager Dana Brown a vote of confidence, Crane did not.“We’ll go through this year like we always do, evaluate and make a decision at the end of the year,” Crane said of two men who are in the final year of their contracts.Until Crane says or acts otherwise, that must be the working answer. It would adhere to precedent for Crane, who has never fired a general manager in-season. In 2014, Crane gave former general manager Jeff Luhnow his approval to dismiss manager Bo Porter during the season, but not until Sept. 1 when the team sat 20 games below .500.It’s important to underscore how high expectations have grown since Porter’s dismissal. Houston has reached the postseason in eight of the subsequent 10 seasons, a stretch in which Crane has crossed the luxury tax threshold three times and claimed the team’s championship window “will always be open” while he owns the team.This Astros team is not performing to Crane’s standards, however lofty they may be. Injuries to integral players have wrecked the roster and some reinforcements Brown signed this winter have not stepped up in their absence.More than 100 games remain in the regular season for players to heal and reinforcements to arrive. Perhaps Crane will exercise patience until they do.If the Astros are still non-contenders at the trade deadline, what’s the chance they actually become sellers and, if so, who would they be most likely to move? — Andrew G.The AL’s mediocrity will make this a more difficult decision than meets the eye, Andrew. Yes, the Astros are eight games below .500. Somehow, they sit just 4 1/2 games back in the AL West and 3 1/2 games out of the third and final wild-card spot.Those deficits do not sound like a “non-contender,” even if Houston has resembled one with some of its on-field performances this season. Perhaps if the team authors a more precipitous decline and those gaps grow, there will be a more serious conversation about conducting a selloff.Bear in mind, though, that Houston has never been a true seller during Crane’s ownership tenure — and especially within this golden era. Even in 2016 and 2025, the last two seasons to end without a postseason appearance, the Astros either operated as deadline buyers or stood pat.Still, if this team becomes a seller, it’s difficult to imagine Crane authorizing a complete teardown. Again, this is the same owner who keeps reiterating “the championship window will always be open.” That aggression has manifested itself most often during the trade deadline.Whether Brown, Crane or other members of the team’s braintrust have a threshold for competitiveness is unknown, but precedent suggests it will be large. The 2024 Astros were 10 games out of the AL West on June 18 — and still operated as trade deadline buyers.How realistic (is it) that the Astros could be buyers at the deadline? — Max C.Very realistic, Max. As just discussed, the AL is dreadful. The Astros employ a general manager who is in the last year of his contract and needs a successful season to justify asking for another one. It is not difficult to see a path toward an all-in trade deadline.Remain within realistic striking distance of either the division crown or a wild-card spot, and the Astros will operate as buyers. As far as what they could seek, it’s the same wish list they had this winter: an established outfielder and a high-leverage reliever.Only five teams entered Sunday extracting a lower OPS from their outfield than the Astros. None has a higher bullpen ERA than Houston’s 5.60 mark, though Josh Hader’s imminent return should help. Still, Bryan Abreu’s stuff is not improving and the reliance on a select few leverage relievers is unsustainable across the next 108 games.Josh Hader saved 28 games with a 2.05 ERA and 13 strikeouts per nine innings in 2025. (Tim Warner / Getty Images)Who is going to run the Astros’ trade deadline? Is Jim Crane going to let GM Dana Brown, in the final year of his deal, make significant moves? — Brandon M.If Crane is going to alter any of his aforementioned precedents, Brandon, it may be after pondering this question. Allowing Brown to oversee the deadline as either a buyer or a team standing pat seems prudent.Permitting Brown to ship out players with multiple years of control, or bring in young players who could comprise the next core, may be better served with the understanding that Brown is the person Crane wants to shepherd this franchise forward. Nothing Crane has said suggests that’s the case.On the surface, Crane’s silence surrounding the status of both Brown and Espada speaks volumes, but this is his standard operating procedure. Crane acted the same way in 2022, when both Dusty Baker and James Click were in the final year of their contracts. Of course, that club won the World Series, rendering Crane’s silence a footnote in a superb season.Houston’s predicament now feels far more perilous. The franchise is approaching a crossroads that could call for more drastic action. Whether Crane agrees with that assessment could determine much of the team’s deadline plans.Is trading (Yordan) Alvarez on the table? — Jim H.For forward-thinking, functional front offices, nothing should ever be off the table, Jim. There is no harm in listening to what other teams would offer for Alvarez. Teams in similar situations do it with their expendable superstars, even if it sometimes never leaks to the public.That said, it is difficult to envision the Astros seriously entertaining a trade of Alvarez, especially if Brown is overseeing the trade deadline. Why would an executive in the final year of his contract — and trying to get another one — trade the team’s best player?Trading Alvarez would also run counter to everything Crane has preached about a perennial championship window. The same sentiment could — and should — be applied to the team’s trade of Kyle Tucker two winters ago, but bear in mind that deal netted Houston two established major-league players along with Cam Smith, then a top prospect. That was a signal the Astros wanted to maintain competitiveness in 2025.It stands to reason any trade of Alvarez during the deadline wouldn’t net Houston the sort of major-league return that Tucker’s did. Sure, Alvarez can change the complexion of any team, but it’s difficult to envision a championship contender trading multiple pieces off of its major-league roster two months before a postseason run.Who will Hunter Brown replace when he returns? And, who gets replaced when (Cristian) Javier returns, if at all. — William T.Javier is still just throwing bullpen sessions, William, so it’s difficult to construct any timeline for his return. Brown made his first minor-league rehab appearance on Sunday. Logic suggests he’ll need at least three more outings before a conversation can even occur about his return to the major-league rotation.That gives the existing members of Houston’s rotation at least a month to solidify their case for remaining there. So much can change between now and then that forecasting who the odd man out will be is an impossible exercise. There’s also the potential for a six-man rotation, which would allow Brown to return without displacing anyone.Still, Spencer Arrighetti, Kai-Wei Teng and Peter Lambert have separated themselves as Houston’s three most reliable starters. Provided they continue to pitch as such, their place in the rotation should be secure.Mike Burrows’ 5.75 ERA is unsightly, as are the 36 earned runs, 66 hits and 12 home runs he’s allowed. Underlying metrics suggest there is room for a positive regression, which Burrows must author to feel more comfortable about his position. Bear in mind, too, that Burrows has pitched into the sixth inning during seven of his 10 starts. That matters.That leaves Tatsuya Imai, who is making $18 million and must pitch as such if he wants the security these other five arms feel.Do the Astros think that can be an everyday starter at catcher, or is he a pure first baseman or a bit of both? — Alan Z.Schiavone, a 23-year-old picked in the 11th round of the 2024 MLB Draft, has been the most pleasant surprise across the first month or so of minor-league play, Alan. His 18 home runs lead all of minor-league baseball and, according to one league source, Schiavone has distinguished himself as “the best catching prospect in the system.”So, suffice to say, the team still thinks Schiavone is a primary catcher. He’ll see time at first base and designated hitter, but only as a means to keep his bat in the lineup. He boasts some of the highest exit velocities in the Astros’ system and, obviously, has great power.Team officials would like to see Schiavone improve his contact rate, and according to one opposing scout, he needs refinement on all the nuances of catching. Schiavone’s arm is not a problem — one league source labeled it a 60 on the 20-80 scouting scale — and in High-A Asheville, he threw out 13 of the 55 runners that tried to steal against him.Double-A Corpus Christi will offer a stiffer test for Schiavone. To hear him discuss more about that and what he hopes to learn at a higher level, check out his appearance here on the “Crush City Territory” podcast.