Today it became official: Rookie GM Alex Anthopoulos did what former Jays GM J.P. Ricciardi could not by finding a trade for Roy Halladay that made sense for his club.
Roy Halladay is considered by many to be one of if not the best pitcher in the game today. He has dominated hitters and despite poor run support on sub par teams in a non baseball market, he continuously put up big numbers and got lots of recognition.
The man they call Doc won the 2003 Cy Young award as the leagues top pitcher and has numerous other times finished in the top five of voting for the Cy. For Jays fans it is likely impossibly to imagine the team without Halladay but after month of speculation that time has finally come.
Its hard to blame Doc for finally wanting out of Toronto. Over the years he has shown loyalty to the team who drafted him and has more than paid his dues to the team,fans and cit of Toronto.
Rumors of Doc's wanting out became public midway through last season and while Halladay had handled the process with dignity, it all came to a boiling point late last season when then-GM J.P. Ricciardi confirmed reports that Halladay had indicated that he would not be returning after his contract expired and desired to play for a contender.
Ricciardi not only threw Halladay to the wolves in the middle of the season but shot himself in the foot as now every G.M. in the league knew that Doc wanted out. Ricciardi now had no negotiating leverage and basically put a gun to his own head.
Halladay had kept things quiet and had J.P. kept this behind closed doors, he would have had more leverage when looking for a deal. The leagues other GMs all now knew that Halladay wanted out and Ricciardi had a window in which to move him if he wanted significant compensation in return.
The Jays and Phillies came close in trade discussions for Halladay but the Phillies eventually shifted their focus to Cliff Lee (whom the would later acquire) when J.P. demanded Kyle Drabek be involved in any Halladay deal.
That being said, as we all know, Ricciardi could not find a suitable package for Halladay and J.P. was soon after fired from the organization. His brutal handling of the Halladay trade drama was the last straw for management.
Enter Alex Anthopoulos.
Anthopoulos came into the role of G.M. in a rough time. The Jays were to slash payroll and move out their iconic franchise pitcher in Halladay. Ricciardi had done A.A. no favors as not only had it become public knowledge that Halladay wanted out and that the team wanted to move them, but the Jays would now likely be getting a smaller package then they would have, had they been able to move Doc last season.
Things got even harder for Anthopoulos when Halladays agent told the media that unless Doc was traded before spring training, he would not approve a trade to any club. The Jays rookie G.M. now had handcuffs on both hands. He had to move his star pitcher, he had a small window in which to do so and everyone knew it.
Anthopoulos fielded many offers during the winter meetings and laid the groundwork for the trade which finally became official today. Toronto traded Roy Halladay to the Phillies for 22-year-old pitcher Kyle Drabek, 24-year-old outfielder Michael Taylor, and 20-year-old catcher Travis D'Arnaud.
While this may not look like a great deal for the Jays on paper, given the circumstances, Anthopoulos not only did the best he could but made a trade which should significantly strengthen the club moving forward.
The Jays immediately shipped Taylor to the A's for slugging third baseman Brett Wallace. Wallace who was originally drafted by the Jays out of high school is a highly praised and polished hitting prospect despite his defensive shortcomings. The Jays view him as an all star, silver slugger caliber 1st baseman who will be a force in the middle of their order for years to come.
Anthopoulos was finally able to acquire Drabek (something J.P. could not). Many scouts view Drabek and his all-world curveball as a front line starter and despite Tommy John surgery early in his career, all signs point to Drabek being a stud.
Travis D'Arnaud is a polished defensive catcher with a good arm and lots of offensive potential. Last season D'Arnaud hit .255 with 13 HRs despite playing home games at class A Lakewood's pitcher-friendly park. Finally it is important to remember that D'Arnaud is still only 20-years old.
Despite the damage Ricciardi had done to the situation last year and the time frame given to him by Halladay's agents, Anthopoulos was able to get three excellent prospects, two of whom (Drabek, Wallace) are considered to be can't miss while the other is young and has loads of potential.
Had the Jays not been able to move Halladay, they would have received two sandwich picks in next years draft and while they would have been high, they likely would not have got the quality and definitely could not have gotten the quantity that they got by making this trade. Finally in making this move they did not have to risk having the draft picks refuse to sign, therefore losing them.
Anthopoulos made the only possible move he could. Many will look at the Jays moving the leagues best pitcher along with $6 million and assume they lost this deal. The truth of the matter is they did not. They had almost no choice and Anthopoulos was still able to secure three solid prospects in return.
While it is a sad day for the Jays (losing their franchise player) it should be considered a great day for Anthopoulos. He has showed that he is not afraid to make tough or unpopular decisions.
While the short term health of the franchise is in severe jeopardy, Anthopoulos did everything he could given the situation and in doing so has helped secure the future of the Toronto Blue Jays. Because of this and how he handled a bad situation, Anthopoulos should be praised not scrutinized for this deal.
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