Hello, Astros fans. Happy All-Star break. The trade deadline is in three weeks. Houston’s needs are obvious in the outfield, starting rotation and bullpen. Whether all of the areas can be addressed is another matter.Now that the draft is over, general manager Dana Brown and his baseball operations staff can turn their full attention toward the deadline. They’ve been involved in some early discussions, but nothing substantive enough to think deals are close. While those conversations continue, let’s answer some of your questions submitted as part of Monday afternoon’s live chat. Questions have been edited for clarity.With so many issues, are we really going to trade away more prospects just to make the playoffs and have a quick exit? I like the team, but I can also recognize that we have several huge holes that won’t go away magically. — Bob W.Brown is in the final season of his contract, Bob, and getting the 2026 Astros to the postseason is the most straightforward way to bolster his case for another one. Last week in Washington, Brown said, “We’re focused on making the postseason. That’s the end-all, be-all. We have to make the postseason. Anything other than making the postseason would be a failure, in my opinion.”Which teams fared well during MLB Draft Day 1?Keith LawThat does not sound like someone planning for a rebuild, restart or step back. Owner Jim Crane isn’t keen on that, either. The Astros have the presumptive American League MVP on their roster, a reigning Cy Young Award finalist atop their rotation and, according to FanGraphs, still a 25.4 percent chance to make the postseason. Brown’s foremost objective is to increase those odds. Doing so does not necessarily have to include trading away more prospects — Brown can trade off the major-league roster — but that is dangerous given the Astros’ lack of depth.It’s a difficult position, but Brown has announced his stance.With the recent rotation issues, do you think the Astros are targeting a starter and a leverage arm instead of a lefty-hitting outfielder now? — Michael L.As recently as last week, Brown reiterated that the Astros’ “main need” is a left-handed-hitting outfielder. The front office is also interested in adding pitching, but based on the tone of Brown’s comments, improving the lineup seems to be a bigger priority.Bear in mind, too, that Ronel Blanco, Hayden Wesneski and Lance McCullers Jr. are all nearing the end of minor-league rehab assignments. Miguel Ullola acquitted himself well in his first taste of major-league life, as has Alimber Santa. Prospect Ethan Pecko continues to pitch well in Triple-A Sugar Land. Brandon McPherson, a Triple-A starter with some big stuff, has also intrigued team officials as a possible bullpen option.Will that be enough to patch the holes in Houston’s pitching staff? Probably not — especially in the wake of Mike Burrows’ placement on the injured list Monday — but it’s more internal options than they have in the outfield.We know the Astros are likely to be buyers. Of the players the team would actually consider trading, which players do you think would have the most trade value? — Andrew G.AJ Blubaugh has drawn significant interest from other clubs and is the most obvious answer here, Andrew. Blubaugh has five more seasons of team control and a starting-pitching pedigree, and he has shown the ability to transition seamlessly to the bullpen. Ullola and Santa fall into this category, too, but neither has proven himself at the big-league level as Blubaugh has.If Bryan Abreu’s stuff continues to show signs of a comeback, he will command similar interest, but his value is lower given he is a rental.If we’re being truthful, shortstop Jeremy Peña is the most valuable trade chip the Astros have, but it’s difficult to imagine any scenario in which they move him before the offseason. Isaac Paredes and Christian Walker would net interest, too, but Houston would be weakening an already top-heavy major-league team by moving them.Why are the Astros still waiting for Bryan Abreu? How is a guy who pitches only one inning per week still on the roster? — Gerald A.It’s a low bar to clear, but Abreu has actually been pitching better, Gerald. His four-seam fastball has averaged at least 96.5 mph during five of his past seven outings. It sat around 94 or 95 mph early in the season.Adding a cutter has helped to differentiate that four-seamer from his slider. More importantly, though, Abreu has walked just four batters in his past 12 1/3 innings — a span in which he’s struck out 17. This isn’t to say Abreu deserves leverage looks, but he’s beginning to show some signs of his old self.Other teams are noticing, too, making Abreu an intriguing trade chip before the Aug. 3 deadline. Abreu is only a rental and his poor start to the season has diminished his value, but if he continues to show improved stuff, interest from other teams will only increase.Is there any chance the Astros are sellers at the deadline? I can’t see Crane conceding the season, and Brown can’t sit idly by with the position he’s in. If we stumble out of the second-half gate, are we mortgaging the future to go .500 no matter what? — Michael D.If the Astros endure an absolute freefall after the All-Star break, perhaps the tone changes, but the mediocrity of the entire American League makes that difficult to believe. It’s hard to imagine any scenario in which they are true sellers — unless, of course, there is a total collapse within the next three weeks.When you talk to people around the league, what do they think of the Astros’ plan to be buyers? To me, it seems delusional, even accounting for how bad the division is. — Peter M.People around the league are conflicted, Peter. An assortment of scouts, agents and rival front-office executives I have canvassed — all of whom have been granted anonymity for their candor — are almost unanimous in their thought that it would behoove the Astros to consider trading some of their controllable major-league talent, be it Peña, Hader, Paredes or Walker.All of them are also aware that Brown is in the final year of his contract and he works for one of the sport’s most demanding owners. They understand why Houston is proceeding this way, but aren’t convinced it is the best option.Let’s focus on the current roster. What do you think (Kai-Wei Teng’s) role looks like in the second half of the season? He was a leverage arm before they moved him to the rotation. With so many shaky players in the rotation, why have the Astros not considered a piggyback system? — Edward C.First, we need to know how healthy Teng is, Edward. Houston put him on the injured list with a right knee sprain that, according to manager Joe Espada, won’t stop Teng from throwing but will sideline him for a bit. When Teng does return, Espada has already said he will do so as a reliever.Teng is already approaching his career high in innings pitched and acknowledged feeling fatigued at the end of June. Expect him to shift back into a multi-inning bullpen role. As part of that assignment, Teng could perhaps serve as an opener or part of a piggyback system. Cristian Javier’s usage thus far suggests he could be in a similar spot.