Roy Halladay? Probably not…

In Ken Rosenthal’s latest, he claims that Toronto ace Roy Halladay is “all but gone” as the Blue Jays will likely trade him (I’m sure the Yankees won’t mind seeing Halladay go to another division). KR also speculates as to who the suitors will be for Halladay’s services and, surprisingly, the Yankees made the rather long list. According to KR, the “Jays will not hesitate to dangle Halladay to the Yankees and Red Sox, who will be perhaps their two most fervent suitors. A’s GM Billy Beane never rules out trading within his division. Ricciardi, Beane’s former assistant, probably would not, either.”

While I would love to see the Yankees acquire Halladay, Rosenthal believes that a package for him would consist of either Phil Hughes, Jesus Montero or Austine Romine (or maybe even a combination of the three). Now, even if the Blue Jays are okay with trading Halladay within their own division—a proposition I am still doubtful of—I would think that the Yankees would balk at sending Phil Hughes or Jesus Montero (who is crushing the ball in AA), in particular, to a division rival. That’s something Rosenthal seems to forget completely. There’s more risk for the Yankees in that deal as either player—Hughes or Montero—could eventually develop into a super star and haunt them for years in the AL East. For that reason, I doubt we’ll be seeing Roy Halladay in pinstripes come the trade deadline. If any team were to get him, I think it would be the Phillies although the Brewers could be a dark horse.