The Houston Astros responded to a fall from 86 wins in 2008 to 74 wins in 2009 by cutting their payroll by $10 million.
Gone are LaTroy Hawkins, Miguel Tejada and Jose Valverde.
They may have helped the team this season, but by the time the Astros would have reached contender status they would have been long gone.
If the Astros are going to match last year's total wins, they will need for some players to step up and replace their production.
Tommy Manzella gets to fill Tejada's position at shortstop.
He will not be able to match Tejada's production at the plate, but if he can produce more offense consistently and if the Astros can see some extra production from others in the order the Astros may not miss Tejada too much.
The other replacement is Kaz Matsui.
He represents an upgrade on defense, but his offense will likely have Astros fans missing Tejada.
Houston added Brandon Lyon and Matt Lindstrom to bolster the bullpen.
They should help reduce the number of blown saves this season.
The Astros will likely fall short of last season's production with the changes that they have made.
They should win about 70 games which will likely put them at the bottom of the Division.
Astros fans biggest worry should not be how the team plays, but where they play.
With the team sinking there is a good chance that the owner will look to sell.
A new owner might help the team become relevant again, or he could just move franchise.