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The St. Louis Cardinals will not defend their World Series championship next month. Perhaps the most pressing issue now is if their longtime manager will be guiding the team again come April.

Amidst persistent questions about Tony La Russa staying with the team beyond 2007, the Cardinals (71-82) on Saturday play the Houston Astros in the third of a four-game set.

St. Louis' slim hopes of heading back to the playoffs ended with a 6-3 loss on Friday. Prior to the Cardinals' 14th loss in 16 games, center fielder Jim Edmonds said he wants La Russa, whose contract expires at the end of the season, to come back for a 13th season.

"Yeah, why wouldn't you?" Edmonds said. "He's one of the most respected people in the game. I don't think you can take this season out on him, at all."

La Russa, who passed Red Schoendienst for most wins in franchise history with 1,042, has been linked with the Reds and Mariners in recent weeks. Cincinnati's Pete Mackanin and Seattle's John McLaren are guiding those teams on an interim basis after the Reds fired Jerry Narron and Mike Hargrove unexpectedly resigned from the Mariners.

The Cardinals are assured of their first losing season since 1999. Entering 2007, they were the lone NL team without a losing record in this decade -- but that was no consolation to La Russa.

"To have that run that many years, I don't feel better because this is the first losing year," La Russa said. "I feel worse that this is a losing year."

Rookie J.R. Towles had a two-run double in the eighth inning Friday that gave Houston some breathing room en route to its third straight win. On Thursday, Towles went 4-for-4 with his first major league homer and set a franchise record with eight RBIs in Houston's 18-1 rout.

For Houston (68-86) to post its first four-game winning streak since May 12-16, Matt Albers (4-9, 6.05 ERA) must avoid losing his season-high fourth start in a row.

The right-hander defeated St. Louis on Aug. 30, when he gave up just one run and three hits over seven innings of the Astros' 2-1 win. Since then, he's yielded 15 runs and 18 hits in 12 1-3 innings for a 10.95 ERA while getting no runs of support. Against Milwaukee on Monday, Albers lasted just 3 1-3 innings, and surrendered five runs and five hits in a 6-0 loss.

"It's frustrating, but I have to keep going. This was a real tough game, but things are just not going my way." he said.

Houston has been outscored 23-4 in Albers' last three starts.

St. Louis' Brad Thompson (6-6. 5.14) looks for his first win as a starter in more than three months. The right-hander defeated Kansas City on June 19, but is 0-2 with a 5.40 ERA in seven starts since.

He lasted only 3 1-3 innings Monday against Philadelphia, and allowed four runs and four hits -- including two homers -- and took the loss as the Cardinals fell 13-11.