Two years ago, the Astros pulled off the coup of the trade season by landing Justin Verlander moments before the old Aug. 31 deadline. Now, they may be hoping to pull another fast one on their rivals.

Houston badly wants to come away with Madison Bumgarner, Zack Wheeler or Trevor Bauer before Wednesday’s 4 p.m. deadline, according to The Post’s Joel Sherman.

There has been uncertainty over whether the Giants will deal Bumgarner, a four-time All-Star and three-time World Series champion, because they have played their way into the NL wild-card race, just 2.5 games out of a playoff spot. Bumgarner, 29, is having a decent season, pitching to a 3.74 ERA, but he’s known for his playoff dominance, going 8-3 with a 2.11 ERA in 16 postseason games. He is set to become a free agent after this season.

The 68-39 Astros, who lead the A’s by eight games in the AL West, have been linked to Wheeler and Noah Syndergaard. The Mets scratched veteran Ervin Santana from Tuesday’s Triple-A start in case Wheeler isn’t on the team to make his scheduled start on Thursday.

Bauer has makeup questions — he threw a ball from the mound over the center-field wall Sunday when removed from the game — but he has 185 strikeouts in 156.2 innings this season along with a 3.79 ERA.