Debunking The Roy Halladay Rumors by Jared Carrabis
Why Roy Halladay won't see the home dugout at Fenway


In case you've been living under a rock in the sports world for the past 24 hours or so, yes, Roy Halladay may be on the move come July 31.

Toronto Blue Jays' GM, JP Ricciardi has received countless calls from several clubs inquiring about the ace pitcher, but none, so far, have come from the Boston Red Sox.

For all of you wondering if the Red Sox are going to make a move for Halladay, I can't give you a definite answer, but I will give you my educated opinion. The answer is no. Right now, the Red Sox are stacked with pitching, and the last thing they need to do is sacrifice their future for a 32-year-old pitcher.

Don't get me wrong, the guy has been one of the best, if not the best, pitcher in the past five-plus seasons, but when it's going to cost you Clay Buchholz, who's only 24 at this point, and Toronto will absolutely be looking for at least two top of the line prospects, it's just not worth it to the Red Sox.

The Red Sox will be heading into the All Star break with two pitchers who have 100+ K's and a third who is leading the American League in wins. I know the saying, "you can never have too much pitching", but I think the 2009 Red Sox are that one exception to this expression. Halladay will hit free agency after 2010 and with all due respect to the Doc, the Red Sox have more important regions to shine their financial focus on.

Priority A: Locking up Jason Bay beyond 2009, before he hits free agency if at all possible, but if not, you've gotta get his signature on a contract before you spend the next five seasons regretting not keeping this guy in front of that big green wall. In my eyes, there are three kinds of ballplayers. There are players that can't perform, there are players that can perform and then there are the special breed of players that can perform in Boston. Jason Bay hasn't skipped a beat since he came over from the Pittsburgh Pirates at the 2008 trade deadline and he put up eye-popping numbers throughout October. The Red Sox will make a grave mistake if they let this guy walk; pay the man.

Priority B: I know that he's more than likely going to stay in Minnesota, but after the 2010 season, Joe Mauer will be a free agent and Jason Varitek will be 39-years-old come Opening Day. I know that's a scary thought to know that our beloved captain's days are numbered, but if Theo knows what he's doing (which I trust that he does) he will shower Mauer in cash to pry him from his hometown roots, away from Yankee temptation and put him in a Red Sox uniform. The future of this team's success depends on it.

Back to my main point: there's no logic in dumping our future core of talent in a trade for Halladay when he would only be around for a season and a half before the Red Sox let him walk in free agency. He will be hitting the free agent market for the third time in his career and will be looking for big money, after all, he's earned it.

The only way I could ever see the Red Sox making a serious bid for Halladay is under one circumstance, and one circumstance only: If the Yankees were serious contenders for his services, the Red Sox might get involved in an attempt to block Halladay from donning pinstripes.

However, the Yankees have made it public that they have no interest in dealing for Halladay for the same reason that they didn't pull the trigger on a Johan Santana deal; it's going to cost a boatload of prospects. Every team that is inquiring about Halladay will be thinking beyond his contract expiring, meaning it's going to cost a solid chunk of change for the receiving team to extend his contract and make their side of the deal worth while.

So, if the Yankees are out, I'd say you can count the Sox out as well, because let's face it; they're just not that desperate. There's still only a 50/50 chance the Jays will unload their ace, and if they do, my bet is on the Phillies to come up with the right package to bring him on board. The Jays have what the Phils want and the Phils have what the Jays want; BOOM, match made in baseball heaven.

If the Jays choose to hang onto Halladay, they'll have a solid draft pick coming their way, so regardless, Toronto will benefit in the future in the form of young talent when Halladay's final start with the Blue Jays is behind him.

Fans' eyes may light up at the chance to land a starter of Roy Halladay's caliber, and JP Ricciardi may be willing to deal the former Cy Young Award winner within the Blue Jays' own division, but do you really think that Theo Epstein, after passing on a sure-thing deal for Johan Santana (which would have potentially sent Jacoby Ellsbury, Jon Lester and whoever else to the National League), would trade his most coveted prospects within the Red Sox' own division?

JP Ricciardi will be looking for multiple top of the line prospects in return for Halladay and what the Red Sox have to offer are Daniel Bard (the future closer/setup man), Clay Buchholz (future top of the rotation starter), Lars Anderson (future starting first baseman) and Michael Bowden (future top of the rotation starter). A package of any of these players, along with maybe a lower-level prospect, maybe a Major League-ready reliever like Manny Delcarmen, maybe cash, might get the job done, but does Theo even want to get the job done?

Trust me, you don't want a Clay Buchholz, Daniel Bard or a Lars Anderson lurking around the AL East in a few years while they're in the prime of their careers, unless they're wearing your uniform. Dan Duquette may have forfeited the farm on this one, but this is the Epstein era; sorry, Roy.

-Jared Carrabis



Published on July 09, 2009

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