There was a pathway for the Houston Astros to open up some breathing room against the luxury tax threshold this offseason. It would have taken making some tough decisions and making some hard cuts at the non-tender deadline. However, aside from designating Ramon Urias for assignment and trading Mauricio Dubón, they didn't take it.
Instead, in the aftermath of those two moves, the club decided to tender contracts to all 11 arbitration-eligible players on the roster. In some cases, like ace Hunter Brown, that was a no-brainer. But in other instances, it certainly feels as if this was taking the easy way out, and keeping the ceiling low for 2026.