Q: Do you think Manny Acta's closed-door meeting Saturday night will have a tangible effect on the Nationals, or do these things not really make a difference? -- Dylan Murphy, Arlington

A: While I don't think you'll see anything overly dramatic to suggest Acta's meeting made a difference, I do think it was appropriate and will have long-lasting effects. Acta doesn't like to hold meetings. In fact, he has only done it twice this season. His reason for holding them isn't to kick and scream and scare his players straight. It's to reinforce his belief in them, to insist to them that while they might be playing better than most expected, they can still do better. Sometimes, players (especially on a young team) need to hear that kind of thing.

Q: I keep reading that Ronnie Belliard was signed with the hope he would play well and that the Nats could then trade him for prospects. Given that he has outperformed Felipe Lopez all year, any chance they will try to keep Belliard past this year and trade Lopez? Or does the injury to Cristian Guzman pretty much rule that out? -- Tom Perris, Burlington, Ontario

A: Belliard's strong play all season, coupled with Guzman's season-ending thumb injury, certainly throws a wrench into the Nationals' plans. But I still think the end result will be the same: If Jim Bowden is presented with a good trade offer for Belliard, he'll make the deal. Not to say that Belliard hasn't proven to be a better everyday player than Felipe Lopez. The problem is that Lopez is under the Nats' control through 2008. Belliard is a free agent at the end of the season. Unless the Nats decide it's worth it to lock Belliard up now while at the same time getting something decent for Lopez, I don't see it happening.

Hi everyone -- long time, no speak. Sorry about that. After covering the All-Star Game in San Francisco last week, I took some vacation time so I could attend a wedding in Oregon. Beautiful country out there; it certainly was a shock to return to the D.C. humidity yesterday.

I'm chatting today live from RFK Stadium, where the Nats currently lead the Astros, 4-1, in the middle of the fourth. I'll provide some game updates as we proceed. To get you up to date, Ryan Church doubled in a run in the first and Austin Kearns (yes, that Austin Kearns) drove in two more runs with only his second double in 22 games. Houston's Mike Lamb homered off Jason Bergmann in the second to make it 3-1, but Ronnie Belliard got the run back with his own RBI double in the third. That's where things stand as we speak.

Before we get to your questions, one brief pause for some sad news: Dave Fay, the Times' longtime hockey writer, passed away last night after a 12-year battle with cancer. Dave was truly one of the giants in this business, an institution at the Times since the paper's inception in 1982 and earlier this year was elected to the Hockey Hall of Fame. Sadly, he didn't make it to this fall's induction ceremony, but I can't tell you how touched he was when he found out he had been elected and began getting well wishes from all over the place. "Dr. Puck" will surely be missed...

OK, let's move onto the Q&A...

Good afternoon everyone from Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia. Plenty going on with the Nats right now between Tuesday's trade deadline, Jason Bergmann's hamstring injury and the ramifications all of this will have on the current starting rotation. Let's get to your questions, and remember, to send a submission in, either click on the above link or e-mail me directly at natsmailbag@washingtontimes.com. Here we go...

Q: With Dmitri Young now slated to play left field next year, are there any positions besides center field that the Nats can legitimately try to improve? -- Steve Koren, Rockville

A: Not really. Every other position in the field would appear to be set: Nick Johnson, Felipe Lopez, Cristian Guzman and Ryan Zimmerman in the infield; Young in left and Austin Kearns in right; and Brian Schneider behind the plate. Center field will probably become the Nats' No. 1 priority this winter, with the club showing interest in a free-agent class that includes Andruw Jones, Torii Hunter and Aaron Rowand.