Halladay price too high?
If the Toronto Blue Jays want to move Roy Halladay before the trade deadline, they may have to lower their asking price.
A proposed deal that would've sent the Toronto ace to Philadelphia for rookie left-hander J.A. Happ and blue-chip prospects Kyle Drabek and Dominic Brown was rejected by the Phillies, ESPN.com reported Saturday.
SI.com and the Philadelphia Inquirer have also reported that Blue Jays general manager J.P. Ricciardi has requested Happ, Drabek and Brown in exchange for the 32-year-old Halladay.
"The ball is in their court," Ricciardi said, not optimistic that the Phillies would accept a deal with the players he desires.
Various reports have indicated the Phillies are most reluctant to part with Drabek, a 21-year-old former first-round draft pick who's 10-2 with a 2.80 ERA and 118 strikeouts in 122 innings combined at the single-A and double-A levels this season.
Brown — a six-foot-five, 204-pound outfielder who's also 21 — is batting .308 with nine home runs in 62 games in rookie ball and single-A. Baseball America ranks him as the Phillies' top prospect.
Happ, 26, is already excelling in the big leagues. The lefty is 7-1 with a team-best 2.97 ERA in 24 appearances for Philly this season — the last 12 of those as a starter.
The defending World Series champions are considered the front-runner for Halladay, the biggest potential catch leading up to the July 31 trade deadline.
Rumours have swirled around Halladay for weeks — ever since Ricciardi unexpectedly said he would listen to offers for the former Cy Young Award winner, who can become a free agent after next season and plans to test the market.
Ricciardi has said he'd like to get a deal done by Tuesday, which would give the GM a three-day window to trade other players before the deadline.
Halladay, who must approve a move because his contract includes a no-trade clause, predicted Friday that he'll still be a Blue Jay when the deadline passes.
"Right now, I think I will be here," Halladay said after pitching nine innings and coming away with a no decision in a 3-2 loss to Tampa Bay that may have been his final home start as a Blue Jay. "I've never felt like there's been a big press on being moved or wanting to be moved."
"If there was an urgency to be somewhere else, and an urgency from the team to have me somewhere else, I think it would be different. I just don't get that feeling."