Mike McKenzie: Gordo--Why does TLR continue to put Chris Duncan in the lineup, let alone batting 5th when it has been two weeks since he got the ball out of the infield? Tony has never been one to make decisions based on emotion but it appears to many Cardinal fans that if Dave Duncan was not his pitching coach, Tony would have done to Chris what seems like a logical move: release him, pay the rest of his salary this year and move on. Enough is enough. When he plays, a black hole exists in the lineup as well as left field. Your thoughts?

Jeff Gordon: Both Duncan and Ankiel are failing, obviously. TLR has cut back their time -- Duncan has 19 at bats since July 2, Ankiel has 13 at bats since his 0-for-5 fiasco on July 7 -- but the problem remains. Hence the whole Troy Glaus-to-left field experiment.

Something will give soon.

Lawarence Marmie: Hey Gordo,

Since the WNBA is struggling finacially and the men in the NBA just roll around on the floor looking for fouls after being slapped on the wrist like a bunch of girls anyway, why don't the WNBA and the NBA just combine into one huge female league?

Jeff Gordon: Bam! Larry is is midseason form, eager for the NFL to get rolling.

Tackleberry: Gordo,

I not liking this new "fringe" player stance. Let's remember that 2 weeks of Good Ludwick doesn't necessarily mean that bad Ludwick (2 1/2 months worth) won't resurface. You can't look at this team and see a small sample of success by one player and say "were fine." Since Chicago Ankile and Duncan are 0 for 23. Stavinoha had a nice poke Friday, but he's not the answer. We assume DeRosa will come around, but maybe he won't ever get comfortable with his wrist. So how all of the sudden do we not need an impact bat?

Jeff Gordon: Ludwick has 223 RBI in 1,098 Cards at bats. That is a good sample and a good indicator that he is an impact hitter, albeit a streak one.

But, yes, this team needs more offense. Matt Holliday would be a nice third OF, but not for what Oakland wants for him. The A's had a chance to make that deal with Cards earlier this year and blew it.

Cards management will use the next week to assess what Troy Glaus might offer for the stretch run.

Worst comes to worst, Brett Wallace could be the missing impact hitter. He is comfortable against lefties and he has developed good plate disciple at Memphis. He would offer a nice upgrade RIGHT NOW.

Tackleberry: Gordo,

The Cards don't want to spend a lot of money, Cardinal fans love past "heros" and this teams needs some more veteran leaders on offense. Why not make a call to Edmonds to come play for an incentive-heavy contract, with the understanding that he will not play CF? He couldn't hit any worse than the players we run out right now.

Jeff Gordon: Maybe not, but he hasn't played baseball in almost a year. And there is a reason why nobody wanted him this winter.

Jman: Gordo hows it!!! Gordo who's the favorite to be called up on sept 1 for the Cards....

Jeff Gordon: A lot of guys are playing well at Memphis. Aside from Wallace, most of them have already gotten at least a peak at this level. There are at least 10 Redbirds who could help this team right now, including Jon Jay and Allen Craig -- two hitters finishing well.