Halliday Season has begun

[jwmorrice]

Surely there must be more teams in the mix than just the Yankees and the Red Sox. I'd like to see Halliday traded far, far away. During the regular season, the Dodgers resisted giving away the farm to acquire him. Having fallen short in the playoffs, they may have second thoughts.

jwm

http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/b...1/24/2009-11-24_roy_halladay_yankees_sox.html
Sources: Boston Red Sox making push to trade for Roy Halladay, try to beat New York Yankees to punch

BY Mark Feinsand and Bill Madden
DAILY NEWS SPORTS WRITERS

Tuesday, November 24th 2009, 9:50 PM

Thanksgiving isn't until Thursday, but the Halladay season is officially underway.

The Red Sox are "putting on a full-court press" to acquire Roy Halladay, according to a source, and are hoping to add the former Cy Young winner to the top of their rotation to go with Josh Beckett and Jon Lester.

"They would love to get it wrapped up before the winter meetings (beginning Dec. 7)," the source said of the Red Sox, who made a big push to deal for Halladay last summer.

If the Red Sox are serious about dealing for Halladay in the next two weeks, the Yankees will likely have their chance to get involved in the sweepstakes for the Blue Jays ace, although it will take a package of top prospects - as well as a sizeable contract extension for Halladay, who has a full no-trade clause - to get a deal done.

According to sources, the Yankees will get together in Tampa next week for another round of organizational meetings, during which Brian Cashman will be given his budget for the 2010 season.

Cashman indicated on Monday night that he wouldn't be in position to begin presenting offers to any free agents until the payroll situation is resolved, but he will surely continue to monitor the Halladay situation, which could be moving faster than many expected.

Although Cashman hasn't held any serious talks with agents yet, the general manager confirmed yesterday that he has spoken with many teams around the league - including the Blue Jays - about potential trades.

Without a firm budget to work with, Cashman can make smaller deals, such as the one he made for Nick Swisher last November, but until he knows how much money he has to spend, trading for Halladay or a player of that magnitude is not going to happen.

To land Halladay, Boston would likely have to give up Clay Buchholz, the organization's top young pitcher, as well as Casey Kelly, the pitcher/shortstop who signed with the Red Sox in 2008 after being recruited by Tennessee to play quarterback. Red Sox GM Theo Epstein is said to be smitten with Kelly, which could be a sticking point in talks with Toronto if Jays GM Alex Anthopoulos insists on the 20-year-old being included in a deal.

The Yankees would love to acquire Halladay, although Cashman has been reluctant to deal away top prospects such as Austin Jackson and Jesus Montero for a player he would then have to sign for more than $100 million, such as Halladay. Toronto would also likely require either Phil Hughes or Joba Chamberlain in a deal.

Other teams figure to be involved in the Halladay mix, including the Angels, who reportedly have stepped up their efforts this week as they prepare for the possibility that John Lackey will sign elsewhere.

Cashman will begin speaking to agents - starting with the representatives for Johnny Damon, Hideki Matsui and Andy Pettitte - once the meetings with ownership are complete. Damon and Matsui have expressed their desire to return to the Bronx, but Pettitte is still contemplating whether he will pitch at all in 2010 or retire. If Pettitte returns, he would move back into the No. 3 slot in the rotation behind CC Sabathia and A.J. Burnett, making it less urgent for Cashman to acquire a big-name starting pitcher.

Monday night, Joe Girardi didn't sound like a man convinced that the options at the bottom of the rotation - most notably Hughes and Chamberlain - can be counted on to fill those slots next season, so even if Pettitte comes back, the Yanks likely will still try to add another arm to the rotation.

 

[jwmorrice]

latimes.com

Angels and Dodgers look into acquiring Toronto's Roy Halladay
Both clubs are interested in the ace right-hander, although the possibility of the Dodgers landing him is called 'a long shot.'

By Mike DiGiovanna

November 24, 2009

The Angels have resumed their pursuit of pitcher Roy Halladay, the Toronto Blue Jays ace who would be an extremely attractive alternative to free-agent right-hander John Lackey, with whom the team continues to negotiate.

The Dodgers also have inquired with the Blue Jays about Halladay, the 32-year-old right-hander who is entering the final year of a three-year, $40-million contract. But one source familiar with their talks, who was not authorized to speak publicly, called the possibility of the Dodgers landing Halladay "a long shot."

The Angels went hard after Halladay before the July 31 trade deadline last season, but talks broke down when the Angels refused to include shortstop Erick Aybar in their offer. Then-Toronto General Manager J.P. Ricciardi was believed to have asked for a pitcher, either Jered Weaver or Joe Saunders, Aybar and outfield prospect Peter Bourjos.

A trade for Halladay this winter is expected to cost the Angels a young starter -- Weaver, Saunders or Ervin Santana -- but new Blue Jays General Manager Alex Anthopolous appears willing to make a deal that does not include Aybar, who hit .312 with five home runs and 58 runs batted in and played Gold Glove-caliber defense this season.

Unlike Ricciardi, Anthopolous reportedly is willing to allow teams a window to sign Halladay to a contract extension, which makes the pitcher, who will be paid $15.75 million in 2010, an even more attractive trade target.

Though Lackey, 31, has been a solid top-of-the-rotation starter for the Angels, posting a 42-22 record over the last three seasons, he is not as durable or as dominant as Halladay, who has a 148-76 record and 3.43 earned-run average in 11 big league seasons.

Lackey, who sat out the first six weeks of the 2008 and 2009 seasons because of arm injuries, is believed to be seeking a contract comparable to the five-year, $82.5-million deal A.J. Burnett signed with the New York Yankees last winter. Some team executives believe Halladay, who is a year older than Lackey, could be signed to a similar deal.

Angels General Manager Tony Reagins could not be reached for comment. Dodgers General Manager Ned Colletti declined to comment specifically on Halladay, but made it clear that the mounting speculation the Dodgers might send right-hander Chad Billingsley to Toronto as part of a package for Halladay is just that, speculation.

"We would like to improve our pitching, especially the starting pitching," Colletti said. "I don't believe we can subtract from it in order to improve it."