To a lineup that already had three players _ Ryan Ludwick, Troy Glaus and Rick Ankiel _ strike out 100 or more times last season, the Cardinals are about to add another, Khalil Greene, who fanned 100 times in just 105 games for San Diego before he fractured his left hand in a snit. But Greene also brings extra-base punch, having hit 82 homers in the last five seasons, including 27 in 2007, while playing his home games in a big park. Now, who do you think should play second base? Where should the Cardinals go next with their quest of pitching? And how do you feel about the Hall of Fame?

Q: I just saw where we may trade 2, AAA relievers to SD for shortstop Khalil Greene. That would be a GOOD DEAL!!!!!!!! I also see where we may try to sign LH starting pitcher Oliver Perez. That would be GOOD also!!! And may still go after Brian Fuentes, IF his asking price comes down. Any truth to any of this??? What do you thank about these rumors ?????

A: Bryan, I’ve been a big Khalil Greene fan for a long time, acknowledging at the same time that he had a terrible season in 2008. Perez would be a good get, if the price is right. Don’t know if the Cardinals are interested in committing years and big money to Fuentes even if the price drops. But who knows how much these prices are going to drop?

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Q: Rick,Bert Blyleven belongs in the Hall. Period.
13 Wins shy of 300 (26th overall in All-time wins)
9th All-time in shutouts (60)
5th All-time in strikeouts (3701)
13th All-time innings pitched (4970)
11th All-time Games started (685)
When’s he going to get recognized and placed in the Hall?
In my opinion he deserves it before Jim Rice and is equally deserving as Andre Dawson.
Does Bert have to wait for a “lesser” class to come to the forefront before he gets in? If so, it cheapens the Hall for not recognizing and rewarding his accomplishments to this point.

A: Mike, I vote for Blyleven and Jack Morris all the time and Blyleven is gaining steam. Your point about waiting for a “lesser class” may be a valid one because that’s how these things sometimes work. Sutter would be a good example, I think.

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Q: Hi Commish

Is there anything YOU can do to get Ted Simmons Elected into the Baseball HOF?

You saw him perform your entire career as a writer. He belongs in the HOF

Please dowhatever you can in your power to get him elected

Fanforever

New Jersey

A: Mr. New Jersey, I guarantee you I will do all I can do to get Ted elected. I have served on the overview committee which reviews statistics of players eligible for consideration by the veterans’ committee and, I believe, for the first time, Ted will become eligible for consideration at our 2009 meeting.

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Q: Hello Mr. Hummel;
I believe the steroid era, which I think began in the mid-eighties and roughly covers a 20 year period, is an era all in itself. So what do you do with it? I think the simple answer is to just call the era “relative”. It’s relative to itself as to the performance of the ball players who played in that era. Some are in the Hall Of Fame already. So McGwire should be a shoo-in. If Big Mac is shut out you may as well pull everyone who played in the era out of the HOF and yeah, that includes OZZIE SMITH and CAL RIPKEN. Big Mac was just as great for baseball on and off the field as anyone in the game in that era and he has the numbers to back up his qualifications for the Hall. I also think Mr. McGwire and three other ballplayers were samples of the era that were put on display in a very intimidating forum when they were called to go before a congressional committee. I’d probably forget how to speak English myself if I had to face such a show of force. After all, it was a Congress game played by their rules and those ball players knew they were in a no-win situation. They suffered what the whole era should have suffered…shame and reputation loss. It’s kind of like the team concept. If one guy fails the whole team fails. I’ve got more to say on the matter, but for space and time sake I’ll stop. What are your thoughts on this Mr. Hummel? THANK YOU for sharing your time with us fans!

A: I have voted for McGwire for three straight times although his hit total of under 1,700 is higher than only three Hall of Famers who were elected by the writers. I understand some voters’ reluctance to usher McGwire in because of the steroids situation but I ask only that if you believe a player is a Hall of Famer, you vote for him the first time and every time. He doesn’t get any better _ or worse _ as the years roll along.

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Q: Commish,

We’ve heard about current major league coach Jose Oquendo getting some interviews as a major league manager. And, we’ve heard about Cardinals’ minor league manager Pop Warner and his aspirations of becoming a major league manager.

Are there any current players, coaches or managers in the Cardinals’ system (either majors or minors) that you see as potential major league managers down the road?

Robert Miller

A: Robert, you touched correctly on Oquendo and Warner. I could see Memphis manager Chris Maloney as a possibility and, from the players’ side, perhaps Aaron Miles.

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Q: I think Randy Wolf would be a good addition as bottom of the rotation pitcher providing you could sign him for only 2 or 3 years at a reasonable (sub 8 mil) price. However if my memory serves me correctly didn’t he turn down a contract from us to sign with the Dodgers for less money? Does that indicate that he may not really want to play here?

A: I believe you are right in that the Cardinals missed out before on signing Wolf. Perhaps he might be more interested now. I thought he was going back to Houston but then the Astros signed Hampton, for whatever reason.