roger from lake tahoe: if the cards are going to pick one of the available free agent pitchers, who do you thing would be the best pickup? if we're going to gamble anyway, shouldn't we try the one who had the biggest upside in the past? can duncan fix any of them?

Jeff Gordon: I'd take a look at Kris Benson, and just because of all those fine photos of Anna Benson on the web.

Wes: Hey Jeff.

The NHL trading deadline is only a month away... the Blues are falling, so they have some decisions to make.

Do they sell away vets like Jackman, Tkachuk, and McKee and try to gian more picks and prospects?

Or do they buy and go after a solid scorer like an Erik Cole-type?

Do you know anyone they're interested in?

Jeff Gordon: I'd like to see them stay focused on the future. A guy like Dumont is interesting, given his prime age. Moving a veteran D (McKee, Backman, Jackman, Salvador) has to happen anyway because the Blues have a logjam. And I don't see how they can give Jackman and Salvador new deals while McKee is still here. Something has to give.

virginiatom: Hi Jeff. I am so angry and feel so powerless in this situation, as I am sure many Rams fans do. Can they ever get it right? WIlliams for secondary coach? How insulting for WIlliams is that? The Rams defense under Haslet performed well in one half of one season out of two. So in two years, they were respectfable, at best, 25% of the time, and clearly awful 75% of the time. Thats in two years! Lets give credit to the fact that the defense played hard to the quality of players we have on that side of the ball and not Haslet, and reward them by giving them a true leader and a proven coach to play for. Williams is one of the best defensive minds out there, and the Rams have a good chance to get him, and yet they handle this like everything else, amatuerish and wrong. So what if Haslet has time and money on his contract? He has had his chance. Pay him off and pay Williams whatever he wants to bring this defense back to the glory days of the Fearsome Foursome. This is a great opportunity for the Rams, but like everything else, they will fail to grasp it until the defense struggles again next year, and the Ram's look back and say we "should" have hired WIlliams.

Jeff Gordon: I liked Haslett's work with a lot of young Rams. The unit buckled at the end, but a lot of that was the overall team malaise. You're right about Williams, he has to be a coordinator and he can certainly pick his spots. But replacing Haslett with Williams wouldn't make much difference unless the whole organization is overhauled. There is much to do!

Tackleberry: I am not a conspiracy theorist, but it is incredibly ironic that Pujols opted not to have a "necessary" surgery in an off-season where the Cardinals ownership moved very conservatively. If this team stumbles out of the gate and Mulder & Carpenter seem like better bets for '09, Would it shock you if Pujols used the balance of the 2008 season to have the elbow surgery and recover rather than play out another disappointing season?

Jeff Gordon: Many players avoid surgery at all cost, and I don't blame them. The thought a long rehab doesn't appeal to him. But we all wonder if the elbow will heal, stay the way it is or get worse. It'll be interesting to see how many ABs Albert gets this year.

Catman: Gordo,

Do the Cardinals really think that their current starting pitching is going to actually compete in the NL Central? Too many question marks and too little talent. Are Duncan and TLR finally going to allow Reyes to rely on his fastball this year and quit trying to make him something he's not? If Reyes had better location, better consistency,and a fastball that reached in the low 90's (like he does in Spingfield) he could be productive. If Reyes faulters early this year as a starter will the Cardinals give up on him?

Jeff Gordon: The Cards could give up on Reyes before then, if another team makes the right offer. Reyes has shown spurts of good velocity in his career, but he also has an extensive injury history and consistency issues. The Cards will let him lean on his fastball IF he gets his velocity up and his location down. It's on Anthony to fix it - he was the one getting shelled out there, not Dave Duncan or TLR.