HOUSTON (AP) -- The Houston Astros declined to offer salary arbitration to free agents Doug Brocail, Randy Wolf and Mark Loretta, though general manager Ed Wade left open the possibility of re-signing them.

The team also declined to offer arbitration to Brad Ausmus, but the veteran catcher said after last season that he wanted to retire if he could not sign with a team based closer to his home in San Diego.

Ausmus was the only one of the four free agents not "ranked." By not offering arbitration to the other three, the Astros can continue to negotiations, but would not be awarded draft-pick compensation should they sign with another team.

Wade said he was "hopeful that we can reach an agreement shortly" with Brocail, who proved a reliable setup man for closer Jose Valverde. Brocail went 7-5 with a 3.93 ERA in a career-high 72 relief appearances in 2008.

Wade also said the team has been forced to scale back contract talks with Wolf, the left-handed starter whom the Astros acquired midway through last season. Wolf, 32, went 6-2 with a 3.57 ERA in 12 starts for Houston in 2008.

"We've had to back off our negotiations for economic reasons, but we can still re-engage at a later date if we can create greater payroll flexibility," Wade said.

With Loretta, Wade said, "we'd like to let things play out for a while."

Loretta, 37, hit .280 with four home runs and 38 RBIs in 101 games with Houston in 2008. The two-time All-Star appeared at all four infield positions in 2008, receiving the majority of his playing time at second base (46 games).