TOWER GROVE — Let the countdown begin.

With Barry Bonds at 756 and beyond, Alex Rodriguez is at 357 and counting to become the next Home Run King.  The most famous escape-clause in baseball has more than a few fanbase’s wondering if their team will be the team  that  lands him  this coming offseason.  The Cubs  are brought up — which  would put  Rodriguez on the same team with the guy the Yankees traded for  him — as are the  glove-fit  Angels. Maybe Boston would come a-courtin’. Would  his hometown Marlins?

What of  our hometown Cardinals?

There  could be an opening on the left side of the infield for the annual MVP candidate, and maybe there would be room in the budget for  the game’s highest-priced player. But is there interest? Is there need?  Will his wife check her off-color tank top at the border of the Central Time Zone? These are the kinds of questions inspired by the first question in today’s mailbag.  The daily question-and-answer session meanders from A-Rod to D-Med to B-Falk to whether there was a Cardinals conspiracy of cruddy play to send a message to management.

Try not to catch A-Rod envy, and on with PostCards:    

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Q: I do not remember what kind of defensive player Alex Rodriguez was as a shortstop when he came into the majors with the Mariners. Most sports talk shows doubt he will be back with the Yankees. What would be the possibility of the Cards signing him to be the shortstop next year? I know it would be a lot of money but A-Rod already knows he won’t get that kind of money anywhere but NY but the story is he doesn’t like the NY pressure.

– Michael B., Castalian Springs, Tenn.

DG: I am always leery of buying into the interpretations of most sports talk radio. There’s a whole lot more guessing than reporting in many markets. But what we can bank on is a Scott Boras client — which Alex Rodriguez is — will always test free agency when he has the chance (see: J.D. Drew and others). He could hit the market as a shortstop because it wasn’t too long ago that Rodriguez was a Gold Glove shortstop for Texas. There is a school of thought that his future is at third base and that his body has grown out of the range he’d need to play shortstop. I’m not sold on that idea, especially not when he could increase his number of suitors by hitting the market as either a third baseman or shortstop.

The possibility of the Cardinals signing him?

This is a speculative question as there’s been no clear answer from the Cardinals on their future plans at that position. David Eckstein? Brendan Ryan? Jack Wilson? Somebody else? Here’s betting that Rodriguez is on their list and that the Cardinals pursuit will be somewhere between the Alfonso Soriano tire-kicking and the A.J. Burnett courtship. While I’m not one to buy into the “environmental” matters of pressure in NYC — sure doesn’t seem to be bothering his MVP-like performance this season — and the warm, cozy embrace of St. Louis, there are plenty of tangible reasons why Rodriguez would be a good fit. The two best righthanded hitters in the game in the same lineup, in the same infield. The left side of the infield would be defensively tight, if A-Rod channels his inner Gold Glove shortstop. The Cardinals would have a comfortable cleanup hitter. Etc. Etc.

KMOX’s Kevin Wheeler made the case for spending as much as $30 million a year to sign Rodriguez on the air and over on his blog. He’s suggested we take up the debate on the air because, if I were the Cardinals, I’d be reluctant to spend $1 million extra on anything but pitching. If $30 million for A-Rod takes one dollar away from signing the needed starters, an expensive deal becomes a burdensome deal.

One other opinion: The Cardinals don’t need Rodriguez or his pursuit of 800 home runs to sell their product. They can make decisions based on what they need to win.

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Q: Got a few questions for you this time that are kind of related to recent events:

1. Hall of Fame: The Cardinals have already honored Rogers Hornsby in an era before uniform numbers and logos on caps; why haven’t they done anything with the others: Jim Bottomley, Frankie Frisch, Chick Hafey, Jesse Haines, Joe Medwick, and Johnny Mize? The Hall of Fame says the Cardinals were their primary team, so I see no reasoning as to why the Cardinals wouldn’t honor them.
2. Why does it seem like the Cardinals never appreciate Brian Falkenborg’s contributions? He does well at Memphis, gets brought up, does decently here, and gets sent down despite being far from the worst reliever at the time, gets taken off the roster even though there’s more expendable players (Travis Hanson, for example), gets put back on, saves the day for the Cardinals last Friday, and then gets designated for assignment again, and many steps keep repeating. Is there something the Cardinals see that we can’t about Falkenborg?
3. What kind of contract did Randy Keisler sign? Didn’t he use up all his options already before, or is this his third option year?
4. Is it counted as an option year when players are brought up for September?

(Side note: Please let me know if i bother you too much.  I wouldn’t want to be on your bad side, especially since  I love the coverage the Post gives.)

– David L., Chesterfield, Mo.

DG: No bother whatsoever. Good questions cannot possibly get on my bad side. I try to keep the bad side clear for its permanent residents. Give them room to stretch, you know. Best answers, in order:

1. Of that list, there remains a campaign to retire Ducky Medwick’s No. 7, but there are only so many numbers a team can retire before it detracts from the honor. Hall of Fame induction and retired numbers should not be linked honors; they both represent different things. Hall of Fame induction is for career, for performance, for contribution to a game. A retired number is for a career with one team, for a performance (or specific performances) with that one team and the contribution to a game — and a community. Look at Ken Boyer’s number hanging up at Busch. This is why the Willie McGee Movement has traction. He’s not in the Hall, but he may have a place on the wall. Retired numbers have to be reserved for the creme de la creme of Cardinals, not of players who have played for the Cardinals.
2. Good question. Falkenborg has a lot of fans in the organization, including pitching coach Dave Duncan.  He’s got a diving fastball and he’s had reliable and considerable success as closer in Class AAA Memphis. He’s trapped by the CBA rules, that’s all that Cardinals see that you don’t. He’s a safe moveable piece for the Cardinals, where many other relievers are not. (Hanson is a tough example because he is young enough to have options remaining.) The Cardinals have made a habit of complimenting Falkenborg when they have the chance, which usually a sign that they are trying to express their appreciation for the yo-yo role they’ve put him in.
3. Keisler signed the standard minor-league free agent contract. If I have it counted correctly he had one option year remaining and is using it now.
4. The player must be on the 40-man roster to get the callup and most will have already been optioned at some point. But if not, then no.  Think of  it as the player is called up in September and, technically, not returned until cut from  big-league camp in spring training. That’s a simple way to keep track.  

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– Ted, Naples, Fla.

DG: It’s a dangerous road to stroll down, this assertion that the Cardinals — in a coordinated effort of poor play — are sending a message to management. That kind of thing doesn’t happen. Perhaps some teams have a natural letdown if nothing is done at the deadline, some other teams rally behind a front office’s inactivity. But a premeditated flop? No chance. It would be unprofessional and entirely impossible to pull off. I didn’t get the impression that the Cardinals’ brass decided to stand pat. I just saw that they couldn’t pull off the deals they tried and couldn’t make others they wanted.

Also, it’s early August. Trades can still happen. That series against Milwaukee is eons ago and there is still time to change the roster after the upcoming road tour to visit the Brewers and Cubs. Then we’ll really see if the Cardinals are “standing pat”.

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Every WEEKDAY as long the questions keep coming, The Post-Dispatch’s baseball writer Derrick Goold will answer fans’ emails in a mailbag blog called PostCards, a spin-off of Bird Land. To comment and discuss the mailbag visit the PostCards blog on StlToday.com. To submit questions write postcards@post-dispatch.com or file them as a comment on this blog. With all questions please include your name and hometown.

PostCards will run online exclusively at StlToday.com.

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