Philadelphia Phillies to Acquire Roy Halladay in Three-Team Blockbuster Deal

The Philadelphia Phillies have agreed to trade for coveted pitcher Roy Halladay in a three-team blockbuster that would send Halladay to the Phillies and Cliff Lee to the Mariners.

Sources say Halladay would agree to a long-term contract extension that would complete the deal. Halladay would go to the National league while Lee would return to the American league where he won the 2008 Cy Young award.

Details of the deal have yet to come out, however it is almost certain Philadelphia would be giving up Lee. The Phillies would acquire prospects for Lee to satisfy the Blue Jays demands, and also send some of their own prospects to Toronto. Philadelphia would also receive some money from the Jays to help pay off Halladay’s massive $15.75 million salary but that number could be negotiated down.

It was rumored that the Phillies coveted Halladay and had wished to acquire him during the summer. Instead they made a trade for Lee, for whom they gave up much less than the rumored package the Blue Jays were asking for.

Even recently, Phillies GM Ruben Amaro Jr. shot down the possibility of a possible Halladay trade.

The question that would come up is why the Phillies would trade for Halladay when they had a sure thing in Cliff Lee, who was the pitcher of the postseason. Lee was absolutely dominant and led the Phillies staff to a World Series appearance.

However the Phillies believe Halladay is a better pitcher than Lee. In the winter meetings the Phillies and Cliff Lee’s agent had some extension talks in which Lee’s agent was rumored to be demanding a CC Sabathia type contract. The Phillies thought that was unreasonable for a 31-year-old pitcher.

So how you trade a pitcher who had one of the greatest postseasons of all time for an ace who has never pitched on a championship-caliber team?

The Phillies believe that you have to go for it now because you could not just let Lee walk away as a free agent. That’s almost impossible to explain to the fans. Instead, the Phillies get a great pitcher for Lee in Halladay, whom they can sign long term.

Halladay led the American league in complete games with 9, went 17-10 with a 2.79 ERA and earned an All-Star game start. He has finished in the top five in Cy Young voting each of the past four years.

Lee, meanwhile, went 4-0 in the postseason with an eye-popping 1.56 postseason ERA.

As for the Mariners, they now have a nasty one-two punch with Lee and the young, up-and-coming ace Felix Hernandez. The Mariners may now be the favorites to win the NL West, as the Angels are in the midst of losing their ace John Lackey.

The move however puts more pressure on Phillies left hander Cole Hamels, who really struggled in the postseason for the Phillies. Hamels was struggling all year and just never seemed to get it together after a great 2008 postseason.

The Phillies, though, seem optimistic about Hamels. He was mentioned in some trade rumors but Philadelphia was reluctant to let the 26-year-old left hander go.

In other baseball news, the Boston Red Sox are expected to sign John Lackey, leaving the Angels as the big losers so far this offseason. L.A. was interested in Halladay and Lackey and missed out on both.

The Red Sox have also made an offer to Cuban pitcher Arlodis Chapman, a left hander who can throw up to 100 miles per hour. But it is probably a long-term project for the time being.

The move puts both the Phillies and Mariners as the favorites to win their divisions. The big question is, who is the better pitcher: Roy Halladay or Cliff Lee?

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Phillies-Dodgers Series Preview

The huge NL showdown is coming up as the Phillies and the Dodgers will meet on Thursday night in Dodger stadium. Over the course of the regular season, the Dodgers had the Phillies’ number, as they earned the home field advantage.

However, things have changed since then, as both teams have made key additions and in the postseason, anything can happen.

 

Pitching

The Phillies will send in left-hander Cole Hamels, who has been inconsistent all year. Sometimes he looks like an ace; sometimes he has bad games. However, against the Dodgers, Hamels has been dominant. In 16 innings against the Dodgers, he has given up one run and 14 strikeouts. Hamels is the key; he has to be the Cole Hamels of old, which means he has to establish the changeup and get head on those Dodgers’ hitters.

The crafty lefty, former Phillie, Randy Wolf. Wolf has the best opponent OPS against left-handers. And although he struggled in game one, he had a great bounce back year, posting a 3.23 ERA and going 11-7.

The big X-factor is the 21-year-old left-hander Clayton Kershaw. Kershaw has an overpowering fastball that can run up in the high 90s, and can absolutely dominate hitters. Although he gave up nine hits, it was his first postseason start and he managed to get out of jams giving up only two earned.

While the Dodgers lack the big names of the Phillies rotation, they have a very deep rotation that includes guys like Hiroki Kuroda, who could be back this series, Chad Billinglsely, and Vicente Padilla, who was spectacular in the clinching game three against the Cardinals with seven shutout innings, giving up four hits.

The Phillies rotation has a very strong top tow with Hamels and Lee. Lee has been dominant this season, giving up two earned in 16 and a third this postseason. Joe Blanton, who is likely to start game two, has posted very solid numbers this regular season, JA Happ, who struggled with his control in game one but posted great regular season numbers, and of course Pedro Martinez, who hasn’t pitched since Sept. 30th but has great postseason experience.

Overall edge—Phillies

I’ll give it to the Phillies if, and only if, Hamels shows up and pitches dominantly. It is very close because of the Dodgers’ depth and the fact that they posted the best ERA over the regular season. But like I said, I love the Phillies’ top two only if Hamels goes back to the Hamels of old.

Hitting

The Phillies can flat out hit the long ball. Howard, Utley, Ibanez, and Werth all hit over 30 homers. The Phillies showed what they could do late in games; they got to closer Huston Street late in the game two nights in a row.

The Dodgers also have a few young hitters of their own in Loney, Kemp, and Andre Ethier, who all drove in over 90 runs. Ethier has had a great year being the big clutch hitter late in games for the Dodgers; however, Ethier has been held versus left-handers batting a mediocre .194, Ethier really hurt Brad Lidge earlier in the season. Look for the Phillies to bring in Scott Eyre if Ethier were to get an at bat.

The big question mark is Manny Ramirez. Manny had an awful slump ending the season; however, Manny had a solid series going 4-for-13 against the Cardinals. Manny is the ultimate postseason hitter with a career .286 postseason career average. Plus, Manny went 8-for-15 in the Phillies’ series last season, for the Dodgers to win, Manny has to step up.

Overall edge

I’ll give it to the Phillies, I know the Phillies are too reliant on the long ball, but I love the Phillies’ middle of order. It’ll be interesting to see how the young Clayton Kershaw, who has given up six earned in 10 innings (amounts to a 5.23 ERA), does in this matchup. And then there is Cole Hamels, who has dominated the Dodgers even in his mediocre 2009 season, giving up one earned in 16 innings.

Bullpen

This isn’t even close; the Dodgers’ bullpen may be the best bullpen in the major leagues, they even have hard-throwing Jonathan Broxton.

However, the Phillies have hit Broxton, and he’s given up two runs in three innings against the Phillies.

The Dodgers also have the two left-handers in the back end of the pen: Hong-Chih Kuo, who has a 3.00 ERA and deadline acquisition George Sherrill, who has a 1.70 ERA and has pitched three shutout innings against the Phillies. One thing to look for is if the Dodgers’ bullpen may be burned out; they have pitched a ton of innings.

The Phillies’ bullpen is a mystery. It has really been a bullpen by committee. Charlie Manuel has gone with the hot hand. But the big question is Brad Lidge. I still wouldn’t let Brad Lidge face a left-hander, plus Lidge has gone 3.2 innings, eight hits, and three earned against the Dodgers this season. Maybe Manuel will go with Madson, but it’s a mystery.

Overall edge—Dodgers

No question I want to go with the Dodgers’ bullpen where I know what I’m getting, while the Phillies’ bullpen is more of a roll of the dice.

 

Prediction—Phillies in 7

I’ll go with the Phillies’ intangibles. I think they have the “it” factor; they know how to win games no matter what. However, I would not be surprised at all if the Dodgers won. Each team has their strengths and weaknesses, not much really separates these teams, and it should be a great series.

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Pedro to Get the Nod for Game Three

Charlie Manuel decided to go with Pedro Martinez for game three, no surprise.

However my problem is that Manuel maybe over-managed the game. The reality is Charlie Manuel threw two starters in JA Happ and Joe Blanton, while they were losing. I’d rather see this happen while Manuel was trying to eat innings to get it to the ninth.

Why not go with Durbin or Madson who both tend to eat innings while the Phillies are behind?

Now Pedro Martinez will have to pitch in cold weather conditions that may include some snow. Pedro is built for the big moment, however in Pedro hasn’t pitched since September 30th, and in his last two starts Pedro has given up a combined 13 runs in seven innings.

The good news is that there is a shot the game gets pushed back due to the possibility of the aforementioned snow. Another note is that Joe Blanton pitched only 19 pitches—basically a warm up session. JA Happ only pitched four pitches and hopefully the knee is fine.

Taking the hill for the Rockies will be 27 year old Jason Hammel. For the season Hammel posted a 10-8 record with a 4.33 ERA.

Over the course of the regular season Hammel had two starts against the Phillies, his first start against the Phillies was on April 11th where he went two-and-two-thirds with five hits while his second start against the Phillies was on August 4th, in which he went six and two thirds with nine hits and three earned allowed.

In Game 2 the Phillies simply didn’t hit Aaron Cook; they didn’t do what they did in game one which was to manufacture runs. The Phillies were too reliant on the home run while Colorado’s top of the order, with Dexter Fowler and Gonzalez, were playing National League baseball and creating runs. The Phillies need to manufacture runs early, and try to get to Hammel early in the game.

Although the Phillies lost and they are going to Colorado, expectations remain high, and it is not time to panic in Philadelphia.

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Pedro Martinez to Make First Start Wednesday At Chicago Cubs

The Phillies have just made the announcement that right-hander Pedro Martinez will make his first start in a Phillies uniform Wednesday against the Chicago Cubs in Wrigley Field.

JA Happ will start tomorrow. His last outing was a complete game shutout against the Colorado Rockies; ironically the start came on the same night in which Pedro fanned 11 batters in the minor leagues.

Happ may have saved his job in the rotation.

It is almost certain that Jaime Moyer is headed out of the rotation; Moyer has been regarded as the weak link of the rotation as he is 10-9 with a 5.47 ERA. Moyer would be headed to the bullpen.

However, the big question to me is how Jaime Moyer will fare out of the pen.

Moyer is 46 years old and he would probably take longer to get loose since he’s a starter, and the transition from starter to reliever is pretty tough as Moyer will get a different workload.

Where does Moyer fit in the pen? Will he be a setup guy, or possibly a long man. That remains to be seen.

Whatever the outcome, it’s unlikely that either Moyer or Pedro will make a start in the postseason as the Phillies will probably go to a four-man rotation, unless Pedro out pitches Happ or an injury occurs. It is yet to be seen how the 37-year-old Martinez will pitch in his first big league start of the year.

Race For an Ace is Over: Phillies Acquire Cliff Lee From Indians

According to Fox Sports writer Ken Rosenthal, the Phillies and the Indians have reached an agreement that would send Cliff Lee to the Phillies in exchange for four minor-league players: pitchers Carlos Carrasco, Jason Knapp, infielder Jason Donald, and catcher Lou Marson. The deal is currently pending a review of medical records.

Many were wondering why Carrasco was scratched from his start in AAA Wednesday morning, while Donald and Marson were scratched from the lineup. Knapp, who turns 19 in August, is sidelined with an injury, however he is seen as the key piece of the deal, and he can throw about 97 mph and currently has one of the best strikeout ratios in all the minor leagues.

This means the Phillies got the ace they wanted without giving up any of their top prospects that were requested by Toronto. There is a possibility the Indians could send the Phils cash to cover part of Lee’s salary.

Philadelphia acquires the reigning AL Cy Young, who beat out Roy Halladay for the Cy Young last season, without giving up any of their top three prospects: Dominic Brown, Kyle Drabek, and Michael Taylor. Lee has the best ERA since the start of the second half, as he also leads the majors in innings pitched with 152 2/3, and a 3.14 ERA, despite posting a 7-9 record. 

On top of Lee, the Phillies got the right-handed bat they needed in Ben Francisco.

My question is, does this make the Phillies the favorite in the National League, better than the Dodgers and the Cardinals?

In my mind this deal puts them over the top and does make them the favorite in the National League, as the Phillies get the ace they need.

 

Who’s More Expendable: Drabek Or Happ?

As the deadline approaches the rumors are surfacing and the race for an ace continues whether it’s Roy Halladay or Cliff Lee. But it would certainly take one of these two, JA Happ and Kyle Drabek—if not both.

But the question is who is more expendable: Happ or Drabek? If you had to give up one, who would it be? The Phillies would certainly have to give up one if not both in order to acquire the much needed ace they need.

 

The case for keeping Happ

JA Happ has been the best pitcher in the pitching staff with a 7-1 record, posting a 2.97 ERA and a 1.18 WHIP. Happ has been crucial to the Phillies success as the other pitchers have struggled.  Happ’s thrown many quality starts including a complete-game shutout against the Toronto Blue Jays in Toronto, which means that the Blue Jays may prefer Happ.

Happ has shown great improvement and a scout said that before the season he looked like a poor man’s Andy Pettitte, but now he looks like something more than that. Another reason to keep Happ is because it is very tough to try to make a run at another World Series after subtracting a piece of your current Major league roster.

 

The case for keeping Drabek

Personally I think that I would rather keep Drabek, if I can. JA Happ is a No. 3 pitcher at best while Drabek projects as a top of the rotation pitcher. Kyle Drabek’s ceiling is much higher than JA Happ’s ceiling, in fact some people feel that JA Happ’s value will never be this high again, as he is pitching much better than projected.

Drabek is currently 21, while Happ turns 27 in October. Drabek is currently the best prospect in the Phillies system and some have called him the best pitching prospect since Cole Hamels. Drabek has a ton of potential, with a plus fastball and a plus curveball. Drabek has been tearing through the minor leagues after coming off a season in which he had Tommy John surgery posting a 11-2 record with a 2.78 ERA in AA and AAA.

The Blue Jays are asking for both and the Phillies seem to think that’s too much, but even a trade for Cliff Lee would involve Kyle Drabek. The Phillies have made it no secret that they would rather keep Drabek than Happ as they proposed a counter offer that included Happ not Drabek.

So my question to you guys in who would you rather keep, JA Happ or Kyle Drabek?

The Philadelphia Phillies 2009 Midseason Report

The overview

With the Phillies sweeping the Pirates, we are now officially at the midway point. The Phillies stand at a 48-38 record, atop the NL East by 4 games, however the NL east hasn’t been a strong division this season. The Phillies have improved at home after a horrible 13-22 start; they stand at 22-23 after a terrific 9-1 home stand.

The Phillies have benefited of a very injured Mets team missing half their payroll with notable injuries of Carlos Delgado, John Maine, Carlos Beltran, and Jose Reyes.

Overall the Phillies have been outstanding on the road, and about .500 at home. The Phils however have been the class of the NL East despite having a sub .500 record at home. Here’s an in-depth overview of how the Phils season has gone so far.

The pitching

Overall the Phillies pitching has not been stellar. The team has an overall ERA of 4.64 which ranks 25 overall in the majors.

However Phillies general manger Ruben Amaro Jr. has let it known that the Phillies are in the market for a starting pitcher, in fact the Phillies are expected to sign free agent Pedro Martinez soon, and are rumored to be interested in the Roy Halladay sweepstakes.

The ace Cole Hamels has been extremely inconsistent. While he has pitched some good games in which he looked like an ace, but most of his games, he hasn’t went deep into the game, and he’s been hit hard. Hamels has a 4.87 ERA, allowing 117 hits in 98 innings, not the numbers of an ace.

While Hamels hasn’t looked like an ace, the other young lefthander JA Happ has. Happ originally started the season as a reliever but eventually replaced Chan Ho Park in the rotation. After a solid outing today, Happ improves to 6-0, with a 2.90 ERA, allowing 70 hits in 87 innings, making a strong case for rookie of the year.

Joe Blanton has been up and down, but has looked good lately. Blanton is 6-4 with a 4.44 ERA. The other starts haven’t been great, Jamie Moyer has had his struggles but like last season Moyer has a 8-6 record with a 5.99 ERA.

Rodrigo Lopez has had two starts, leaving his last start after five innings of work. Lopez had a stellar first start against the Mets. Other starters like Antonio Bastardo and Chan Ho Park didn’t last long due to frequent struggles.

The bullpen has been inconsistent; guys like Ryan Madson and Brad Lidge have had major struggles at one point. Lidge was terrible for the beginning of the season and still hasn’t returned to 2008 form, although he has shown flashes of 2008, he currently has 7.03 ERA.

Madson was great as a set up man, but came to the closers’ role when Lidge went to the DL and really got hit hard. Chad Durbin has been inconsistent with a 4.47 ERA; JC Romero has been strong since coming back from his 50 game suspension with a 3.14 ERA.

One positive note is that Chan Ho Park has settled into the long reliever role, pitching quality innings.

The hitting

Unlike the pitching the hitting has been great. The Phillies offense ranks leads the NL in homers, and runs scored. The offense has carried the team at some points, in fact the Phillies have been very resilient and a great comeback team.

The leadoff hitter Jimmy Rollins has struggled although he has got it going in the month of July, betting  .381. However Rollins is batting a mediocre .228 with a mere .285 on base percentage.

Rollins is traditionally a slow starter and tends to do better in the second half, but if the Phillies expect to score some runs, it makes it a lot easier when your leadoff hitter is on base, and Rollins has actually been walking a lot lately.

Chase Utley was the Phillies most productive offensive player, and really stepped up when Ibanez went down. Utley is batting .310 with 20 homers and 61 RBI, earning his fourth all-star start, and becoming the premier second baseman of baseball. Utley has also been strong defensively, with only 2 errors.

Ryan Howard earned another all star appearance, with a .258 batting average, with 22 homers and 66 RBI. Howard lost 25 pounds since last season, and it has really shown with his defense, as he has made some very nice plays only making 4 errors.

Last season Howard had to carry the team late in the season, this season he hasn’t. a huge reason is the new acquisition of Raul Ibanez. Ibanez has made the fans forget about Pat Burrell.

Ibanez has been able to do things that Burrell wasn’t able to do like playing the full game due to his solid defense. Ibanez has been a clutch hitter providing big hits late in the game. Ibanez is leading the team in batting average and homers, batting .314 with 22 homers and 60 RBI, despite being on the DL for some time.

Overall the Phillies have sent five all stars, three outfielders, while Utley, Howard, and Ibanez get most of the credit. Shane Victorino and Jayson Werth have been the underrated all stars, earning their first all star appearances.

Werth has certainly been a surprise hitting 20 homers and 56 RBI, his previous career high in homeruns is 24, he’s on pace for a 30 plus homers, 100 plus RBI season.

Team MVP—Chase Utley

It was tough picking this one, but I went with Utley because he really stepped up offensively when Ibanez went down. Utley would get some serious consideration if Albert Pujols wasn’t in the league.

Utley has become the best second baseman in baseball. Batting .310 with 20 homers and 61 RBI, Utley earned his fourth all-star appearance, not to mention his stellar defense at second base.

Team LVP—Jimmy Rollins

The 2007 MVP is this year’s LVP. Until Charlie Manuel sat him for four straight games, Rollins had been the team’s worst hitter. Rollins batted .167 in June, .238 in May, and .207 in April. He’s started to get it going, batting .381 in July. Rollins needs to get it going, because he’s the catalyst for the offense.

Second half prediction

I will make a bold prediction that the Phillies will win the division, if the Mets get healthy it may be a case of too little too late. The Marlins are too young, and the Braves don’t have that big bat.

If the Phillies make a trade for Roy Hallady they are a lock to make it to the NLCS. If Pedro Martinez is signed and becomes a reliable starter to go along with Hamels and Hallady, this team will be favored in almost any playoff series.

The Phillies’ task right now is to improve the starting pitching, to go along with the great hitting in place in order to make another run at a world championship.

Do You Consider Cole Hamels An Ace?

Although Wednesday night ended in defeat due to the bullpen, I actually put most of the blame on Cole Hamels.

I know the bullpen let go of a one-run lead and Hamels only gave up two runs, but this was the fifth day where your ace was pitching. It was also a game where Cole Hamels should have went eight innings, not six.

So my question is: do you consider Cole Hamels an ace?

Well, does he have ace stuff? There is no question he does. He throws a plus-fastball to go along with the best changeup not coming out of Johan Santana’s hand. He’s 25-years-old, which means he has not reached his maximum potential. But looking at him, he has not looked like the Cole Hamels we got accustomed to from the last few years.

In 68 innings, Cole Hamels has given up 81 hits. Last year in 227 games, he gave up 193—a few less. His WHIP is 1.39 compared to 1.082 last year, which means that this year he is giving up more hits and walks.

Hamels pitched a career high 227 innings plus the games he pitched in the postseason. So, it is only normal to expect a drop-off since he was a horse last year. Hamels’s ERA is 4.62.

I know it is early in the season, but last year Hamels finished with an ERA of 3.09. As the ace of this pitching staff, you expect Hamels to take the ball every fifth day and pitch well enough to win the game.

However, is Cole Hamels an ace? Well, let’s compare Hamels to another 25-year-old left-hander, Jon Lester. Lester is another phenom who looks like he has a bright future. Many people consider Lester an ace since he threw a no-hitter and pitched better than any AL pitcher at the end of last season.

Last season, Hamels pitched 227 innings compared to Lester’s 210. Hamels had an ERA of 3.09 compared to Lester’s 3.21, while Hamels’s WHIP last season was 1.082 compared to Lester’s 1.274. Lester had a better record despite having a higher WHIP and ERA.

Now, let’s compare this season. Hamels has an ERA of 4.48 compared to Lester’s 4.76. Hamels’s WHIP is 1.39 compared to Lester’s 1.34. Both have struggled, especially Hamels who had a very forgettable first start against Colorado. Hamels was pitching hurt and his velocity was in the mid 80s.

Now let’s go to what I think is the decisive category: post-season numbers. I know the ratings were low for last year’s World Series, but Hamels pitched as good as Sandy Koufax, and in no way was he going to lose a game last postseason.

He went 4-0 and could have been the first pitcher to go 5-0 had the weather permitted. Hamels’s overall record in the postseason is 4-1 with a 2.16 compared to Lester, who pitched the clinching game of the 2007 World Series in one of the greatest comebacks. Lester is 2-2 with a 2.25 ERA.

Now the answer to my question. Do I consider Cole Hamels an ace?

Absolutely.

This year he has been nothing close to an ace, but he needs to settle down and start looking like last year’s Cole Hamels. Can Hamels improve? He can and needs to be more of a horse, pitching deeper into games.

What really upset me is that I don’t see Cole Hamels telling the coaches to keep him in the game. I still think he needs to be more of a horse. Remember, this is not a solid rotation.

Joe Blanton is a No. 2, at best. Moyer is a back-of-the-rotation pitcher. Happ is nothing special and Antonio Bastardo is a work in progress who has figured out that you can’t get major league hitters like Jason Bay out on one pitch. He is too hesitant to throw his changeup and eventually hitters will catch up to him, if they already haven’t.

If the team hopes to make another magical postseason run, they will need to acquire a pitcher at the deadline. Talking to ESPN.com’s Jayson Stark at a book signing, he told me that guys like Oswalt and Halladay will not be traded. Guys like Erik Bedard, who comes with a lot of issues, and Brad Penney, who has pitched great but is very injury-prone, will be on the market.

Penney impresses me and can be a great No. 2 to go along with Cole Hamels. The bottom line is that Cole Hamels is an ace. But you simply can’t win a World Series with Joe Blanton as your No. 2.

Phils Take Two From Yankees, Ruiz Is Series MVP

The Phillies finish a great interleague series with the New York Yankees on a very positive note, winning the game in the extra innings. Clay Condrey the reliever came up big, getting out of a big jam in the 10th inning.

Carlos Ruiz had six hits in the only two games he played this series. The Phillies however, got it done with pitching and defense, Carlos Ruiz threw out a man at second late in the game, blocked Johnny Damon at the plate and tagged him out again, as he did in game one of the series, and he came through in the clutch when he hit a double near the third base line right past Alex Rodriguez allowing Chase Utley to score—the potential game winner.

Clay Condrey pitched very well after Brad Lidge blew the lead in the bottom of the ninth. Lidge’s struggles continue, giving him four blown saves. Condrey however, pitched great in relief of Lidge, getting out of a big jam in which Derek Jeter and Johnny Damon both hit singles to start the 10th. He later got Teixeira to ground out into a double play, allowing Jeter to advance to third base.

Alex Rodriguez came up with two outs and Jeter on third, Condrey walked him and got Ramiro Pena to fly out to Shane Victorino in center.  Later in the 11th with two outs, Chase Utley walked and stole second and Ruiz, in a long at bat, doubled allowing Utley to score.

With the Mets losing to the Red Sox, the Phillies now hold a game and a half lead over the Atlanta Braves for first place. They will come back home to take on the Florida Marlins tomorrow—Memorial Day.