Jul 24 2009
The Halladay Sweepstakes Is On
Toronto Ace’s New Team Soon To Be Decided
This is always a fun time of year, isn’t it? When teams with visions of golden trophies and tickertape parades begin their maneuvering, and when the pretenders give up the chase and start planning for “next year”, though next year never seems to come for some of them.
Wrigleyville, I feel your pain.
Anyway, there is little arguement to be made when it comes to this year’s prize. That man is none other than the Toronto twirler, Roy Halladay. It’s extremely doubtful that the Jays will keep him any longer than the next few days, and wherever he goes, division titles and postseason dramatics will most assuredly follow. The question is, who gets him?
There are a number of teams which remain in contention even now, but only a few have a realistic shot at winning it all. In the AL, particularly the East, the Yankees, Red Sox, and Rays all have a very real possibility of ending the year as division champs, at the least. The Central boasts Detroit, Chicago, and Minnesota (spoiler?) as playoff candidates, and in the West the Angels are fighting off an unexpectedly powerful Texas team for their right to be king of the hill.
In the NL, Philly is rolling over the competition, the Dodgers are leading the entire major leagues in win percentage, and the Central…woah, the Central is a mess. All but Pittsburgh remain within 5 games of first place, though the division is essentially Chicago’s to lose, and it appears that lose they shall. Which brings me to my next point…
There have been rumblings that Halladay may leave the AL altogether and land in St. Louis. A signing of that magnitude, in a division like the Central, means certain victory for the beneficiaries of ol’ Doc’s services. Indeed, Halladay could seal the fate of the NL East were he to end up with the Phightin’ Phils, especially when they’ve already picked up the unemployed Pedro Martinez as (esentially) pennant insurance. A rotation of Halladay, Hamels and Martinez is just sick.
But sicker still would be C.C., A.J., and Halladay. Oh, and Joba. And Pettitte. That would be murder for those poor souls doomed to run the Bronx gauntlet. If I were Theo Epstein, I’d grab him before they do. One thing is for certain, and I’ll go on the record with this right now: If the Yankees, Red Sox, or Phillies get Halladay, they will win it all. So perhaps the Phils should consider that before the two-headed monster that is the Steinbrenner Brothers swoop in and steal him away, and the World Series with him.
Don’t be fooled; this is exactly what’s at stake. Not just a division, or even a league, but the whole ball of wax. That alone is enough to make the division leaders sweat a bit, maybe toss around in bed at night, hit the coffee and cigarettes like they’re pulling an all-weeker. They certainly have a lot to think about.
Like how much they’re willing to give up in order to leave their mark on baseball history. What would that be worth to you?
