"Albert Pujols possesses more than 400 home runs in 11 seasons, three NL Most Valuable Player awards, two Gold Gloves and widespread recognition as the game's best player.

Unclear is whether the superstar free-agent first baseman and longtime face of the Cardinals enjoys a healthy market.

As Major League Baseball's winter meetings convene today at the Hilton Anatole, the Cardinals appear to face uncertain competition for a signature player who last February rejected a nine-year contract extension worth about $22 million per year. The defending World Series champions have yet to modify last January's proposal, which came as Pujols entered the final installment of an eight-year, $111 extension signed shortly before he would have reached an arbitration hearing in 2004.

Cardinals chairman Bill DeWitt Jr. and general manager John Mozeliak arrived at the meetings' hotel headquarters Sunday afternoon shortly after Pujols' representation headed by agent Dan Lozano.

What so far has resembled a relatively tame process may gain significant momentum in the next 48 hours, with or without the Cardinals' participation, based on comments by several industry sources."