Phillies still favorites to land Halladay

The rumors are continuing to swirl around the Phillies and their possible acquisition of Roy Halladay, and now a deal appears to be getting closer to happening. According to Jon Heyman of SI, the Phillies and Blue Jays have begun discussing which prospects the Phillies would be giving up in the swap, with Carlos Carrasco, Michael Taylor and Jason Donald being likely included in the deal. Heyman also says that the Blue Jays want Kyle Drabek, although the Phils have been reluctant to want to deal their best prospect. If Drabek was included in the deal, according to Heyman, the Blue Jays would accept almost immediately.

The Phillies remain the favorites to acquire Halladay, with no other team a strong possibility. The Giants, who suddenly find themselves in the Wild Card hunt, are interested but won't want to give up on their young players. The Angels also want Halladay, but they don't have the prospects. The Yankees and Red Sox remain in the hunt, but there still has to be some reluctance by the Jays to trade within their division. The Rangers or Dodgers could be longshot candidates, but all signs point to the Phillies being the primary landing spot for Roy Halladay.

That's not to say this is a done deal. The Blue Jays don't have to trade Halladay this season, they can wait until the offseason or the trade deadline next season. What this does tell us is the Phillies are serious about getting a top starter, so perhaps if they can't get a deal for Halladay done, they would look at some of the other top pitchers available, like a Cliff Lee. Still, Halladay remains the best pitcher available so the Phillies better do all they can to get him to Philly.