Tagged: Roy Halladay
12/16 Hot Stove – Breaking Down the Halladay-Lee Deal
There are no losers in this four team deal. We have to praise all of the GMs in involved.
Let’s start with the Phillies. Ruben Amaro Jr. was able to acquire perhaps the best pitcher in baseball and lock him up to a long term deal while trading Cliff Lee to the Mariners and re-stocking his farm system. You have to give him credit. He couldn’t lock up Cliff Lee long term so he made the move for Roy Halladay. Great job!
Now onto the Mariners, where Jack Zduriencik has been quite busy this offseason. First, he signs Chone Figgins and then he trades for Cliff Lee. You now have to make them the favorites in the AL West with perhaps the best 1-2 punch in baseball with King Felix and Lee.
The Blue Jays did what they wanted to do. They were able to trade Halladay and they were able to get some top prospects in return. Kyle Drabek was their target back in July and they finally got him. They were also able to send Michael Taylor to the A’s for Brett Wallace, who will bolster their infield with his bat.
We have winners all around after this deal. It will be fun to see them all in action come next April. Watch Hot Stove tonight at 6pm ET.-Mitch Williams
Click here to watch Wednesday night’s interview with Roy Halladay.
12/15 Hot Stove – Brotherly Love
It was only five years ago that the Phillies were stuck in the middle of the road…or the street. Broad Street, to be exact. Not yet a playoff team but certainly not a bunch of pushovers. The folks in South Philly had a beautiful new ballpark, 80-plus wins a year and a few stars on the rise. Yet it was a franchise few opposing players and fans believed in.
That was two general managers ago. Ed Wade was running the show back then. While Wade handed out some ill-advised contracts, he was steadfast in holding onto young talent like Chase Utley and Ryan Howard when he had a chance to “go for it” and possibly reach the playoffs. By staying the course, drafting fairly well, developing Minor Leaguers the right way and hiring baseball lifer Charlie Manuel to replace Philly icon Larry Bowa as manager, the Phillies were building a team that could win over and over and over.
When possible Hall of Fame executive Pat Gillick took over for Wade, the Phils reached the promised land. When Ruben Amaro Jr. took over for Gillick, he continued to tweak a talented roster even “after” a World Series Championship. How novel an approach.
Raul Ibanez, Cliff Lee, Placido Polanco, Roy Halladay – the Phils get better with every move. The folks in the front office outdo themselves with every transaction.
With a top notch Spring Training facility, ‘ditto’ for the big league park, a few of the most talented and confident stars in the game, plus a sports crazy fan base, Philadelphia is now a city big leaguers want to play in.
Unless they’re on the visiting team.-Matt Yallof
12/14 Hot Stove – Pitchers Burning on the Stove
If this three-team deal goes through with Roy Halladay and Cliff Lee involved, it would make the Blue Jays big winners today. Everyone knew the Blue Jays had to make a deal, and with what we’re hearing, they made a great decision.
Instead of taking a watered down deal from one team, they get to pluck a few of the best prospects from the Phillies’ and the Mariners’ farm systems.
What this deal sets up is the Mariners becoming the favorites in the AL West. With Cliff Lee and King Felix, you have the best lefty/righty combo in the game. Beckett and Lester, Beckett and Lackey, Sabathia and Burnett, are not going to dominate like Felix Hernandez and Cliff Lee.
Cliff Lee gave the Phillies everything and more they could have expected last season. The only thing I can think of is that Roy Halladay gives the Phillies the big dominant right-handed ace. With lefties J.A. Happ, Cole Hamels and Jamie Moyer in the rotation, Halladay can add some balance.
Like the Yankees making big moves last year, the Mariners and the Red Sox are emerging as the teams making noise this offseason.
The only noise out of Anaheim has been the star players leavening. The Angels are sitting back while Seattle is going after it. The Angels are closing in on a deal with Hideki Matsui, replacing one aging slugger for another, which means Vladimir Guerrero will be out of Anaheim.
The John Lackey signing means two things for the Red Sox. First you can all put your Jason Bay jerseys in a frame, because they’re a collectors’ items now. With all the money spent on Lackey, I don’t think Bay is coming back to Boston.
Secondly this gives the Red Sox six starters. Josh Beckett, Jon Lester and John Lackey will lead the way. With Daisuke Matsuzaka you hope to get a bounce-back year. This leaves the number-five spot for Clay Buchholz and Tim Wakefield, who was an All-Star last year. Wakefield has always been a durable, “I know what I’m getting” guy, and the best number-five starter in the game.
What this scenario does is open the door for Adrian Gonzalez to come to Fenway. The depth in pitching allows Buchholz to be the chip that can bring in Gonzalez. With Gonzalez’s power bat at first, they can platoon Jeremy Hermida with another guy – say pick up Dan Uggla – to fill the spot in left field.
In between all the dealings between the East and West, the Cardinals are waiting to hear back from Matt Holliday. They made a respectable offer, but there might be more riding on a Holliday deal.
The Cardinals need to keep Albert happy, because if he’s not happy with the direction of team, he will have options.
Just imagine if Pujols tested the free agent waters? -Greg Amsinger
12/9 Hot Stove – Winter Meetings Day Three
It’s day three of the Winter Meetings and after surviving three long days there have been a few surprises. The first surprise being that the Yankees were able to obtain a young, affordable, power-hitting centerfielder without parting with any player who had a significant impact on their championship-winning club.
This is a shift in the old Yankees philosophy of just picking up big-name free agents. The Yankees now do more than just spend. They identify a need and fill it! Pronto!
As for the other team in New York, there has been little buzz. The Mets are a team desperate to improve in many areas, yet to improve in any area. The aggressiveness they showed last winter would come in handy this offseason.
Some people around here thought Randy Wolf would be a good fit for the Mets. They didn’t get it done, and now one of my favorite players to chat with has a three-year deal to pitch in Milwaukee.
Just as they were before the trade deadline, Roy Halladay trade rumors are swirling here in Indy, but surprisingly there has been no substantial rumors involving Adrian Gonzalez. Padres new GM Jed Hoyer is either extremely discreet or he has decided to keep the face of the franchise in place.
Last surprise, after three days of eating steaks, my cholesterol is still under 200! Gotta run. Almost time for dinner. I’m thinking steak. Again. – Matt Yallof
12/7 Hot Stove – The Left Wing
We finally get the Winter Meetings kicked off today, and with the cold setting in, it’s time for some deals to heat things up.
I’m interested in a few key situations, and how they’ll pan out during the meeting.
First of all, the big fish, Roy Halladay. With all the rumors swirling around lately, it seems like a deal is in the air, especially if he’s not going to accept a trade once the season begins.
The Blue Jays can learn a lot from the Johan Santana deal a few years ago. The Twins waited and then had to settle for the Mets offer which looking back was not the best offer on the table. Instead of playing tug-of-war with the Yankees and Red Sox, they need to make a good quick decision. We all know Roy’s got to go, but not getting the right prospect will return cost the Blue Jays big in the future.
I’m also interested in the Matt Holliday scenario. If the Cardinals can’t sign Holliday, then who else is out there for the Cardinals to sign to protect Albert Pujols?
Holliday has already proved he’s up to the task, so the Cardinals need to have a better plan if they decide to pass on Holliday. Is there one out there? I’m not so sure there is.
Then there is John Lackey, the only true ace available as a free agent. In his career he’s proven himself as a big game pitcher, a number one-starter, and a durable arm. What team out there won’t want to sign him?
Hot Stove is going to be jam-packed tonight – Braves Manages Bobby Cox and Cubs Manager Lou Piniella will join us together from Indianapolis. The Braves have been busy in the offseason already, so we’ll have plenty to talk about with two of the greatest managers out there.
Hot Stove airs tonight, tomorrow and Wednesday live from the Winter Meetings headquarters in Indianapolis from 6-8pm ET. We’ll have interviews and team updates throughout each show. – Dan Plesac
11/30 Hot Stove – Winter Meetings Preview
Tonight’s show will open with the top free agents available this offseason as we get ready for the Winter Meetings, which begin next Monday. We’ll be live from Indianapolis next Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday with Hot Stove from 6:00-8:00 p.m. ET, so make sure you tune-in.
We’ll explore quite a few free agents tonight and I’ll give you our top five for this blog:
1) Matt Holliday
2) Jason Bay
3) Chone Figgins
4) John Lackey
5) Aroldis Chapman
We’ll discuss some of the possible places these players may land.
Later in the show our own Baseball Insider Jon Heyman will talk about where Roy Halladay could end up. The Yankees are now in the mix since Halladay waived his no-trade clause for them.
Also, as most of you know already, Yankees PA announcer Bob Sheppard retired over the weekend. We’ll take a look back at his glorious career.
There’s plenty to talk about this offseason. Make sure you watch Hot Stove tonight at 6:00 p.m. ET.-Greg Amsinger
Click here to watch our Bob Sheppard feature from Monday night.
11/18 Hot Stove – The HOT Corner with Hazel Mae
Here’s What’s HOT……Doc on the Block.
Congratulations to Mike Scioscia and Jim Tracy, two skippers who lead their teams through difficult situations to a great and successful season. Hats off to you gentlemen.
Hope you’ll tune in at 6pm Eastern, where in the Insider Segment, I’ll be sitting down with Sports Illustrated Senior Writer, and MLB Network’s own Jon Heyman to discuss some potential trades.
The biggest trade commodity out there is Roy Halladay, from my hometown Toronto Blue Jays.
Toronto’s rookie GM Alex Anthopoulos said he was open to the idea of trading Halladay in the AL East, something former GM J.P. Ricciardi was adamant about averting.
The interesting twist in this development is that the biggest suitors out there for the former CY Young winner are the Yankees and Red Sox. Halladay has always been a “Yankee Killer,” and would do wonders for a Red Sox team that has lost their starting pitching depth due to injuries and trades.
For the Yankees, the addition of Halladay to a stacked staff that already includes C.C. and A.J. could potentially be lethal to all of baseball.
The tug-of-war over Halladay might just be another chapter in the already heated Red Sox/Yankees rivalry. And you know the MLB Network will be there as this battle unfolds.
Halladay is a fierce competitor and his timeline for winning a championship might not be aligned with the Blue Jays plans for building a championship team.
Do I want Roy Halladay, possibly the best player ever to wear a Toronto uniform, to win a championship elsewhere?
NO, but can a trade for Halladay help this young Jays team be more competitive when they’re ready to put up a fight against the heavyweights in the AL East?
I don’t know, but I do know growing up a Jays’ fan, I’d hate to face Doc in Game 7 of the ALCS, that would be painful…especially in anything other than a Toronto uniform.
Till next time, eh? – Hazel Mae
Click here to watch our segment on Roy Halladay from Wednesday night.
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