Phillies Must Acquire Roy Halladay
July 9, 2009 by Staff
Filed under All Sports
If the Phillies don’t get the Toronto Blue Jays Roy Halladay, they don’t want to win the World Series.
It’s true, it is human tendency to relax once you get to the top. Hell, if it weren’t for that, society as we know it wouldn’t exist, because the strongest most intelligent of us would always be on top of the world.
The Philadelphia Phillies are no exception. After winning the World Series last year, the organization as a whole seems to be resting on their laurels. The front office hasn’t made any big moves of any substance since winning it all in October. Their “biggest” move was signing Raul Ibanez, which has worked out well, but let’s face it, they got lucky on that one.
The players on the field have let up the most. Jimmy Rollins is having a horrible year, Ryan Howard is slowly falling off the planet, and role players like Jason Werth and Carlos Ruiz aren’t exactly having their typical seasons either.
Yet despite all of this, their talent has allowed them to remain atop a struggling National League East division. But if they want to stay on top, the players are going to have to step it up, and the front office has to go out and get pitching ace Roy Halladay.
Halladay would officially end any hope of any other team in the NL East winning the division. The Mets, who may already be dead, would see the light at the end of the tunnel dissipate. The Florida Marlins who are hanging on strong, would lose the audacity of hope. And the Braves, who are a long shot at best, would officially have to call it quits.
Halladay would be that much of a different maker for the Phillies; maybe more of a difference-maker than he would be on any other team.
Halladay would give the Phillies a #2 pitcher, for which of the top 8 teams in the league, the Phils are probably the lone contender who doesn’t really have that. Also, because of the homerun alley that is Citizen Bank Park, the Phillies need a ground ball pitcher. Halladay is great at generating ground balls, as he produces them at a rate of 56.4% (5th highest in the majors). Lastly, by pairing Halladay with Cole Hamels (last year’s World Series MVP), that would give the Phillies perhaps the best 1-2 punch in the National League, all but assuring them a trip to baseball’s World Series.
So say what you will, but the Phillies would be dumb not to sell their souls for Halladay. As long as they don’t have to give up any short-term pieces, they mine as well trade the future for the Toronto pitcher. Getting Halladay would put them in contention for the next 3-4 years. So what if they are back in the cellar in 2015? If they’ve been to 2 or 3 World Series between now and then, I think it would be safe to say that they made a deal with devil and came out on top.
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