Absolutely gut wrenching, but needed if there is a desire to maximize a 'window' of success. We have to give to get. Good deals still sting. But, I believe that, for better or worse (for me, worse), the FO desires long term above-average-ness than ever sacrificing long term assets for the opportunity to be elite in the short term. And I think that the FO specializes in drafting and development which will provide long term above-average-ness, but I do not believe elite status can be achieved without occasional high impact trades or FA signings. At the end of the day, I know that I references our 87 and 91 WS wins a whole lot more than our "sustained above-averageness in in the 2000s"