[njpsufan]

Saw that the Jays are now willing to let teams talk to Halladay before making a trade offer, so that they can see if he will agree to a new long term deal. If that's the case and I'm the Phils, see what he wants in a deal. If you can agree then you start the bidding with Toronto by offering Happ and either Brown or Taylor. Drabek is a no go area. But after watching Werth break out this year, and Victorino continue to improve, its obvious those 2 will be part of your OF for the next few years. Ibanez has 2 yrs left on his contract. So where would 2 young OF fit in??? Think we will see Mayberry start to be groomed to play 1B, to step in for Howard agst lefties..... his numbers agst LHP are just ugly... a .207 avg and 7 HR. But if you could trade Brown or Taylor as part of a package for Halladay long term, why wouldn't you? Our SP next year would be Lee, Halladay, Hamels, Blanton and then either Moyer, Pedro ( if he signs), or Kendricks. The following year would be Halladay, Hamels, Blanton, Kendricks and Drabek. Or something to that effect.

[kkfan91]

see i don't want to trade Happ is my issue who unrelatedly got robbed on the ROY

[njpsufan]

Nor do I. But who would you rather have a 32 yr old (turns 33 in May) who since 2002 has never had a losing record, has won over 15 games 6 times in those 8 seasons, won a CY young and come in the top 5 in voting 3 other times, or a 27 yr old guy with 1 season under his belt? Sure you could say Halladay is older and would not warrant anything more then a 3 yr deal, maybe 5 max if the final 2 were options. But as good of a year as Happ had, he is very late to the majors and honestly, do you real think he will be a guy who wins 15+ games for us? Halladay has pitched in a tougher league ( for pitchers) and there is no reason to think he still won't be a damn good pitcher 4-5 years from now. After that, different story. I like Happ but with the team we have now, we are poised to win for the next 3-5 years. After that, Rollins, Utley, and Howard will have peaked most likely. Lee is going to ask for a huge contract, esp after what he did in the playoffs. But can we afford that?? We save $20M this year, but that's before giving out arbitration and signing a 3B and some RP. So payroll will be close to last year most likely. Looking at the rest of our staff, I think it could use a Halladay. Lee, Halladay and Hamels gives us the top 3 in all of baseball. Plus it gives Hamels a chance to relax, without having the weight on his shoulders, something he showed this year he is not completely comfortable with. Plus it allows our guys in the minors another year to get ready, so that we can bring Drabek or Savory or whomever, up to the bigs when they are ready, not because we are desperate. It gives the young guys a core group of veterans to learn from. For that, I am willing to let Happ go, along with Taylor or Brown.

[njpsufan]

Well now we have something. Halladay says he will not re-sign with Toronto after this season. So Jays really do have to trade him now... if they wait until June or July they will get a lot less. Keep hearing Dodgers name as a potential landing site.... but they talk about Kemp or Eithier and either Kershaw or Billingsley. If I am LA, no way do I do that. Kemp and Eithier are both studs. Kershaw has ton of potential. Billingsley you can get rid of but the other 3 are untouchable... even for a Halladay.