Obstacles aplenty in any potential Halladay deals

Knobler: Second option can lead to No. 1 for Phillies

The Philadelphia Phillies now off the table after acquiring Cliff Lee from Cleveland, Toronto general manager J.P. Ricciardi says his "gut" tells him that ace Roy Halladay will remain with the Blue Jays through Friday's deadline.

Trade deadline translation: Less than 48 hours until Friday's non-waivers trade deadline, Ricciardi's gut is telling him that it doesn't like what the Angels, Red Sox, Dodgers, Rangers and Yankees are offering.

Toronto has yet to see an offer for Roy Halladay it likes. (AP)

"My gut tells me [that he won't be traded]," Ricciardi told colleague Danny Knobler shortly after learning Wednesday that the Phillies had re-directed away from Halladay and latched onto Lee. "We haven't been moved enough to move the player."

No doubt, Ricciardi is speaking from the heart. But in both trade-rumor and dog years, two days until the deadline is an eternity. And multiple executives think the Jays are too far down the trade path to turn back now.

"My question now is, how bad do they need to trade him?" a source with one team discussing Halladay said Wednesday. "If you wait and do it in the offseason, you're going to get less than you get now.

"Because if you trade him now, the team that gets him gets him for two playoff runs [this year and next; Halladay is signed through 2010]. That makes it more reasonable that they would get maximum value for him.

"Are they cleaning house? Do they have to trade him for financial reasons? Those are the questions that have to be answered."

The Blue Jays continue to insist on a return package that includes a shortstop, catcher and pitching -- probably a total of four players, according to sources with knowledge of the Jays' thinking.

The Red Sox, following divergent trade paths -- including with Cleveland's Victor Martinez, according to sources, after unsuccessfully trying to land Adrian Gonzalez from San Diego -- continued to push in Halladay's direction Wednesday. Toronto's preference is to not deal Halladay within the AL East. But with the Phillies now out of the talks, the Blue Jays' potential trade pool narrows.

Boston is said to be willing to part with right-hander Clay Buchholz, he of the no-hitter two summers ago. But the Red Sox reportedly will not include outfielder Ryan Westmoreland and pitcher-shortstop Casey Kelly -- each a 2008 draft pick -- in any potential deal.

The Red Sox also would prefer not to trade flame-throwing right-hander Daniel Bard, but to land Halladay, it likely would take two of Buchholz, Bard and right-hander Michael Bowden.

That still does not satisfy Toronto's demand for a young shortstop and catcher. One scout who has been following Boston's farm system said Wednesday that the Red Sox are thin talent-wise at the Triple- and Double-A levels. This likely either will deal Boston out in the Halladay talks or cause the Red Sox to work toward including a third team in the deal.

Under ultra-creative general manager Theo Epstein, they did that last summer in trading Manny Ramirez to Los Angeles while acquiring Jason Bay from Pittsburgh, and they did it in 2004 in dealing Nomar Garciaparra to the Cubs and filling defensive holes with Orlando Cabrera and Doug Mientkiewicz.

The Angels have been talking Halladay with Toronto for weeks but have not been inclined to produce a package to the Jays' liking. The problem the Angels have is that, given that they are not deep in pitching in the minors, they probably would have to surrender a player or two from their big league roster in a Halladay deal. And with the third-best record in the majors at mid-week, they so far are not inclined to strengthen themselves in one area while weakening themselves in another.

Among the names the two clubs have discussed are shortstop Erick Aybar, third baseman Brandon Wood (who also can play short), catchers Jeff Mathis and Bobby Wilson, infielder Sean Rodriguez and pitchers Jered Weaver and Kevin Jepsen, as well as some prospects.

But the Angels are not interested in dealing Weaver -- then a Halladay-led rotation still would be lacking -- and they definitely do not want to include Aybar and Wood together in a deal. And the way Aybar has emerged over the past six weeks, they really are not interested in trading him, either. With Chone Figgins eligible for free agency this winter, Aybar is the in-house candidate to replace him in the leadoff spot in the lineup.

The Angels also are scouring the market for relievers. Among others, they're talking with Baltimore about George Sherrill.

How important is it for the Angels to add pitching by Friday's deadline?

"As things are sorted out, I think in our arms, it's very clearly defined that we need consistency," manager Mike Scioscia said. "We'll try to fill it [with an acquisition].

"I really think that if we don't acquire pitching, we have the arms here. We have the arms to throw the ball better. In the bullpen, we're starting to see roles develop.

"We're going to get after it. And if we don't make a move, I think we have the people here."

The Dodgers also have been in touch with Toronto regarding Halladay and are looking at potential relievers, too. General manager Ned Colletti reported Wednesday that they are "still working" toward netting help.

Texas, too, is looking for starting pitching and has checked in on Halladay. There is rampant speculation within the industry whether Halladay, who has full no-trade powers, would approve a deal to Texas. Traditionally, most pitchers want no part of working in such a hitter-friendly ballpark.

Also, there are serious questions whether the Rangers can afford Halladay, who is due a pro-rated portion of his $14.25 million salary this year and $15.75 million next year. Major league baseball reportedly loaned owner Tom Hicks some $15 million just so the club could meet payroll.

And at one point in June, because of the tight purse strings, the Rangers' equipment people had only ordered enough baseballs to get through the end of July.

Which begs the question: Even if the Rangers, rich in young pitching prospects, coughed up enough talent and money to land Halladay, would they even have any baseballs left for him to throw?