It’s O-Phil-cial: Halladay now a Phillie

At one press conference, the Philadelphia Phillies were celebrating the dawn of a new era with the best pitcher in baseball. At another, the Blue Jays were lamenting the loss of their franchise player.

It was a sad day for Toronto Blue Jays fans – for the past five months, we had been expecting this day to come, but I don’t think any of us could have prepared ourselves for the heartache that came along with letting go of Roy Halladay.

After watching today’s press conference, there is reason to believe there is a lot of hope for this franchise moving forward. AA kept a very positive tone this afternoon and did a good job of providing the answers that everyone was looking for.


ADVERTISEMENT

One phrase that Anthopoulos used quite frequently was “young, controllable players”.

Obviously this is what the Blue Jays were seeking, and is the reason why they didn’t go for a deal with the Los Angeles Angels involving players like Eric Aybar and Mike Napoli. While being good players, they could either potentially walk in just a few seasons or command quite a hefty contract.

Also, by trading for players with major league experience, you already have a relatively good idea of what their ceiling is and what to expect from them in the future. Whereas with highly-touted prospects, their potential is nearly unlimited.

It’s refreshing to see a General Manager who understands the value in having a player under team control for six seasons, rather than a free agent who can command colossal amounts of money and just walk away at the end of their contract.

Expectations will be undoubtedly high on the players the Blue Jays received in return: Kyle Drabek, Brett Wallace, and Travis D’Arnaud. I don’t think we should bank on any of these guys being the next Roy Halladay, however there is a great deal of potential and promise in each of them.

Even if just one of them turns out of be a success, the Roy Halladay trade would have been all worth it.

Ian Hunter

Ian has been writing about the Toronto Blue Jays since 2007. He enjoyed the tail-end of the Roy Halladay era and vividly remembers the Alex Rodriguez "mine" incident. He'll also retell the story of Game 5 of the 2015 ALDS to his kids for the next 20 years.

14 thoughts on “It’s O-Phil-cial: Halladay now a Phillie

  • December 17, 2009 at 2:21 am
    Permalink

    may have been worth it…still hurts like hell though. anyone notice his new number is the same as one AJ Burnett?

  • December 17, 2009 at 2:51 am
    Permalink

    That IS strange. What makes it even weirder is that nobody on the Phillies has the number 32, so why didn't Halladay just go for that number?

  • December 17, 2009 at 2:53 am
    Permalink

    Sorry – I just did a little research and it turns out the Phillies retired number 32 in honour of Hall of Famer Steve Carlton.

  • December 17, 2009 at 3:01 am
    Permalink

    Well I guess that makes sense then.. but 34?

  • December 17, 2009 at 4:37 am
    Permalink

    It sucks he shares the same number as A.J. Burnett, but I'm sure its insignificant to Doc … so long as he gets his World Series ring, he probably doesn't care what number he gets.

  • December 17, 2009 at 10:18 am
    Permalink

    Brett Wallace will help us heal over time. I did a comparison of his minors stats to Ryan Braun's at the same age. Not only is Wallace a level ahead each year, but he performs juts as well despite it.

    As for the Jersey number, I'm just fairly certain that for Doc it was either 33 or 22 because he wanted to be as close to his old number as possible…..I think.

  • December 17, 2009 at 1:43 pm
    Permalink

    Is it just me, or does Doc look old in this picture?

    Strategically trading Doc is the right move, otherwise the Jays were at great risk of overpaying for diminishing production (see Vernon Wells). With a limited payroll, this is a risk that is to great to take, especially when the team already had one cripling contract on their hands.

    It hurts like hell, but it's the right move. I just wish it was a move that they made last off-season.

  • December 17, 2009 at 3:39 pm
    Permalink

    Mat, that is very good news on the Brett Wallace front. Promising numbers from a guy who could be this team's next Adam Lind.

    Peter D, Halladay DOES look very old in that picture. I guess 15 years in the Blue Jays organization has not helped him age very well. I imagine a few years in Philly will help those age lines dissipate.

  • December 17, 2009 at 5:13 pm
    Permalink

    i might have cried a little when i saw him put on the jersey

  • December 17, 2009 at 9:01 pm
    Permalink

    my biggest fear: Halladay will finally get his no-hitter…against the Jays. I'm not looking forward to that series in June.

  • December 17, 2009 at 11:14 pm
    Permalink

    Another take on the Halladay photos: why does he look kind of sad? Is he really such a real guy that he actually didn't want to leave Toronto but felt be had to? If that's true, he's one of a kind.

  • December 18, 2009 at 3:36 am
    Permalink

    Matty, it was tough to see him in a jersey – but he's happy. You can tell in the photos and by the press conference. He's excited to be there and excited to be on a winning team, and I'm happy for him.

    Anon, I honestly wouldn't be surprised to see Halladay throw a no-no in the next couple of seasons. He has come close quite a few times, and the caliber of the teams in the NL East is less than the AL East.

    Mattt, I noticed that too – he does look teary eyed in a couple of those photos. Tears of joy or sadness? Maybe a little bit of both …

  • December 21, 2009 at 8:11 pm
    Permalink

    a few days later and I am still depressed over this, I knew it was coming but still can't help the feeling

Comments are closed.