Let's see ...
1) there were no true game-changers on the block; Gray is nice, but he's not the difference between also-rans and world champions; there was no 1998 Randy Johnson (or, on the offensive side, 2004 Carlos Beltran) out there; the Yankees needed Gray more than the Astros, because, despite the recent run of mediocrity, the Astros are still the better team;
2) the Astros were reportedly highly focused and very near obtaining one of the very best relievers available, but the other team's owner pulled back; but for a dyspeptic octogenarian in Baltimore, people would be praising Luhnow as the second coming of Branch Rickey; that seems like pretty flimsy grounds for people to base an opinion;
3) contrary to some complaints, the Astros didn't put all their eggs in one basket with Britton; they reportedly had a couple of other deals in the works concurrent with the Orioles trade; they didn't come through; that's life; you can't force other people to give you everything you want; the only thing you can control is how you react, i.e., not panicking;
4) they obtained a pitcher whose overall body of work is unimpressive, but whose skill set upon closer inspection is very suitable to fill a specific hole in the bullpen, i.e., a lefty who can retire lefties; Liriano is yet another example of looking beyond superficiality to find someone who contributes to the roster in ways that may not seem obvious;
5) there is still no team in baseball that has more organizational talent, major-plus-minors-combined, than the Astros; better to have a general manager who focuses on the big picture, having a dominating team that can win for years to come, than one who panics and overpays due to fan and media (and apparently clubhouse) complaining;
6) no matter what moves the Astros could've made at the trade deadline, as someone else already pointed out, if enough key players can't get healthy and play effectively by the time the playoffs roll around, they're unlikely to get very far anyway; you can't remake your whole roster in July;
7) maybe the top prospects Luhnow refused to give up won't work out, but based on his track record, one or more of them probably will; by keeping them all, he increases the chance that the ones who do succeed won't do so elsewhere; this team is still early in its window;
Brian T. Smith sounds like the second coming of Pinwheel, stirring up shit just to have something to write about; Keuchel should've kept his comments behind closed doors, but Smith is fanning the flames by patting Keuchel on the head about it.
