2009/07/29

Phillies Close to Acquiring Lee

According to sources, the Phillies are very close to trading for Indians pitcher, Cliff Lee. Carlos Carrasco, Jason Donald, and Lou Marson have all been pulled from their game tonight. These are three players who essentially could be involved in a trade for a pitcher. The talks for Cliff Lee have heated up as the talks for Roy Halladay have slowed down, and it looks like Lee could be a Phillie very shortly. Many people around the Indians club believe a trade could happen at any time now. According to Ken Rosenthal at Foxsports.com, "Class A right-hander Jason Knapp is the centerpiece of the Phillies' offer for Lee". The Phillies are still involved in talks to with Seattle for Jarrod Washburn. If the talks break down and the Phillies don't get a starting pitcher, look for the Phillies to make a push for the reliever from Baltimore, George Sherill.

1 comment:

T-Bone said...

First, RIP Jimmy Johnson. Philly has lost more than its fair share of legends over the last few months -- very sad.

Regarding this potential acquisition -- yawn!
Let's see, Cliff Lee or Roy Halladay -- there's a real poser!! Once again, it looks like Philly will get skittish and fail to pull off a genuine blockbuster trade. Word is that Toronto is insisting on getting both Drabek and Happ, which Amaro is reluctant to do. As consolation, we'll get Lee & maybe a minor league pitching prospect for a fistful of Iron Pigs & Knapp from Single A. Not horrible, particularly since we keep Drabek & Happ, but nothing to get the adrenaline flowing either. In the meantime, looks like Halladay may well be heading to the Bosox!! That's a nauseating thought, especially since that's likely to be who we'd be facing in the Series. The fact is, Halladay could be the Fightin's modern day Carlton -- and he's clearly a few notches above Lee at his best. Pitchers of Halladay's caliber only come along once in a blue moon, and if you have the chance to get him, you should shoot the moon to make it happen. This seems like another "nervous Nelly" move from the Phil's front office. And if Knapp is such a cornerstone for this trade (some scout reportedly called him a "Halladay clone" -- a tad optimistic for a Single A pitcher, don't you think?), are we really better off trading him over Happ/Drabek? Sorry, though I think Lee would be a decent acquisition, it's a thoroughly underwhelming move compared to a Halladay deal. Any way I slice this, I just see another typically overcautious Philly failure to be "all you can be."