Sources: Phils agree to Lee trade
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Sources: Phils agree to Lee trade
Andy Martino
Two sources with knowledge of the negotiations confirmed to the Inquirer that the Phillies have agreed to trade Lou Marson, Jason Donald, Carlos Carrasco and Jason Knapp to Cleveland for pitcher Cliff Lee and outfielder Ben Francisco. The deal is done pending a review of medical records, and could be announced shortly.
Lee, 30, the 2008 American League Cy Young Award winner, is 7-9 this season with a 3.14 earned run average. Francisco, 28, is a righthanded hitting outfielder, batting .250 with 10 home runs this season. Francisco has pinch hit twice this season, going hitless in two at-bats.
The Phillies had long been engaged in talks with the Toronto Blue Jays to acquire pitcher Roy Halladay. But the Blue Jays asked for pitcher J.A. Happ and top prospects Kyle Drabek and Dominic Brown. Phils general manager Ruben Amaro Jr. was able to acquire a former Cy Young Award winner without trading any of those players.
The most likely roster moves for the Phils would be to option John Mayberry Jr. to Triple-A, and demote a pitcher like Steven Register or Kyle Kendrick.
Comments (605)
- philly7, you've got a point there. Having Boras in the mix would be a bigger problem than having to give up Drabek. The net difference between "A" (having Halladay, along with his baggage Scott Boras, and also the loss of Happ and Drabek) and "B" (keeping Happ and Drabek, not having to deal with Boras and his BS, and not having super-expensive Halladay) is minimal, especially now that we have Lee.— jman
- It's late but I'll post this anyway, like the deal it's good enough to get the core of this team energized and the fans satisfied and we didn't give up too much. I think the Halladay deal would have taken too much and then instead of energizing your team it puts too much pressure on it because you're expected to win because you gave up so much. I think Lee fits in nicely to this rotation as a number 2 and doesn't upset the apple cart as much. The reason you aquired him for this year is basicly 3 or 4 wins which are just as atainable as if you had gotten Halladay. I think Happ will end up in the pen for the playoffs and Moyer will be in the rotation. Moyer seems to have righted the ship I felt he may not even make the playoff roster earlier in the year if he didn't get his act together but he seems like he has and his experince will get him the nod over Happ. He's your # 4 if he's on he stays in if not he gets the early hook. If Myers comes back Durbin is out and Martinez is out no matter what now thank goodness he's a minor insurance policy right now nothing more.— allrightknight
Comment removed.- If Amaro REALLY wanted to impress us, he would trade Buntlette (preferably to the Mets or Braves)!— jman
- Unless there are more injuries, I could foresee a playoff pitching staff of Lee, Hamels, Blanton and Happ in the rotation with Lidge, Madson, Romero, Myers, Martinez, Park, Eyre and Condrey in the pen. Moyer and Durbin would be the odd men out. That would be a really good rotation and bullpen to go into the playoffs with if Lidge can get straightened out.— JimG
- For all of the people obsessed with the fact that Lee is left-handed, forming an opinion simply based on that is ridiculous. I'm right-handed, so would I have been a better option for the Phils than Lee? Even looking at only his lefty/righty splits for this season doesn't show the whole picture. Look at his splits for other years: 2008 - .245 vs righties; 2007 - .267 vs righties; 2006 - .282 vs righties, 2005 - .237 vs righties; 2004 - .277 vs righties. Overall, his opponent average against righties is much better than the current .303 this year. Lee's opponent averages should be going down too because he's facing a pitcher now instead of a DH as that 9th hitter. Look at a guy like Hamels...last year, righties hit only .215 against Hamels. If you can pitch, then you can pitch. Lee will be fine. Look at the splits this year for some of the potential big boppers in the line-ups of possible playoff teams: Pujols - .340 vs righties, .271 vs lefties, Holliday - .298 vs righties, .295 vs lefties, Ramirez - .333 vs righties, .286 vs lefties, Lee - .286 vs righties, .310 vs lefties, Soriano - .267 vs righties, .184 vs lefties. Pujols, Ramirez and Soriano actually hit righties MUCH better than lefties this year, Holliday is a wash and Lee hits lefties a little better.— JimG
- Eric Bruntlett is the worst stiff in baseball and needed to go 3 months ago. He's been horrible. No tears shed for him despite the run he scored.— Bob1
- Yep, he's a fly ball pitcher all right...except he allows the fewest HR per fly ball than anybody except Lincecum. And righties are hitting .300 against him, although lefties hit .226. And woe is us he's left handed, the guy gets people out who cares? They could clone Carl Hubbell and trot him out and somebody will whine "But he's left handed!" Jesus what complaining...only way this trade is a bust is if Knapp ends up being a stud and Drabek a stiff, the other players we gave up are marginal talents in the bigs.— MichaelRCH
- Drabeck better be Tom frigging Seaver!!— lcd24
- A great trade in every way. Now it just remains to be seen who the odd man out in the rotation is. I see it as Hamels, Lee, Blanton, Happ, Moyer with Martinez doing long relief. If someone falters down the stretch (Happ comes to mind), Martinez will pick up the slack. Right now, they can afford to let him get his feet wet in the majors in some long relief and then go from there.— Fritz and Alice
- Right handed batters are hitting .300 off him, fly ball pitcher, left handed. Other than that great deal!! Drabeck better be Tom frigging Seaver or the Phillies better win the World Series in the next two years. If not this will go down as a bust of a deal.— lcd24
- From the players' initial comments, Lee should be a good fit. Now the bullpen.— spinmeister
- Great trade. We get our cake and get to eat it too!! Or something. We get Lee and don't have to give up Happ. And Francisco has GOT to contribute more than the Brunt!— pajamas
- This is a coup for the Phils. We were all focused on Doc, and worried about losing the farm, and now we have a Cy Young winner and kept our top prospects and Happ. This looks good.— CenterCityPhan
- this guy is a stud, go look at his #'s this year. he had two rough outings in april, but since april 16 his era is 2.66! of his losses or no decisions, the tribe scored 2 RUNS OR LESS nine times! the indians have given this guy zero run support. he also leads mlb in quality starts, tied with Lincecum. he may me not quite be halladay, but man this looks like a really good arm for the price.— MichaelRCH
- I'be followed this story closely. Nice job, Inquirer. You outdid everone.— spinmeister
- If you want to make another trade before the deadline, how about improving the bullpen, since Lidge, Madson, Durbin, Condrey and Romero have all been undependable since they started doing that reality TV series. The only dependable reliever the Phillies have is CHP.— Gnip Gnop
- Good move. Moyer has 10 wins with an ERA over 5. This guy has an ERA around 3 in the American League after 22 starts. Imagine how a guy who holds AL lineups to 3 ER per 9 IP will do with the kind of run support Moyer gets. And even if Lee draws the opponent's ace every time (limiting the run support), look what this will do for Hamels. And Drabek and Happ are still ours, for the moment anyway. Good move.— NJLouis66
- I'm in Cleveland- Tribe fans distraught. Phillies did not give up anyone the Jays wanted for Halladay. Brutal for C-town fans.— binzer
- Let's go and get Roy! We have upgraded pitching without losing the players that were discussed on both sides for Roy. Picture this: Roy, Cliff, Cole, Myers, and Blanton. Go for it!— Higher Ground
- With the current configuration of the team, it would make no sense to dump Bruntlett, since he is the only backup for Rollins and Utley. Francisco is CLEARLY intended to replace Mayberry on the active roster. With 4 lefty starters I smell a possible trade involving Happ. Moyer has very little trade value, and would not do well in a transition to the bullpen. Lopez and Martinez potentially create quite a logjam, though I suspect Martinez ends up in the pen if he's pitching well, and Durbin stays on DL until September call-up time. Again, as for the question of Happ, is there a Halladay holiday upcoming?— DocB
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Let's take the next step and get Halliday. Look out world— Phil Lee- Ruben, Ruben, Ruben. You could've had the PRIME RIB, but instead, you went with the Salsbury Steak. When it's crunch time... Game 7... Hamels pitched in game six, watch out. Good luck Phans, thanks for playing the "Trade 4 Doc" game.— T.O.Lanny
- I will forever be appreciative of Eric Bruntlett for scoring the winning run in Game 3 of the WS last year on Ruiz's infield chopper. Now the Phillies can release him - but the sight of him charging home on that late Saturday October night at 2am sure was sweet.— smel4727
It's a great deal! You people who think any team Halladay goes to wins the WS are nuts. What will Boston and LA have to give up to get him? Probably major league talent since their minors aren't as stocked as ours. And if the price for Halladay just dropped, maybe the Phils still have a shot.- yes yes yes way too many lefties in our rotation (laughing with sarcasm) jut like Ibanez was making the middle of our lineup "so overmatchted vs lefties"..get over it, if a player is a stud they are a stud..doesnt matter how many lefties they see in a row..when you have Hamels and Lees stuff doesnt matter. love this deal— philsfan in the atx
- i like the deal.only concern on lee is the .278 baa and more hits than innings pitched. francisco will help the bench. will just have to pick up a catcher to stash in AAA in case ruiz gets hurt. myers and bastardo could be in house options to help the pen. now, who breaks the news to pedro? if he looks so-so on friday, the phils probably cut him and eat the million bucks, unless he agrees to go into the bullpen... that 2 year contract to jamie moyer is a killer— jim715
- cy young 2008? I know Halladay has been more dominant over a 5 year span but come on? I can't believe all the whining you guys are doing and we didn't even give up Happ? Yea we're gonna lose to whatever team Halladay pitches for in the World Series? Are you kidding me? he has never even made a world series. Welcome to the World Champs Cliff Lee, you'll probably pitch a no hitter this year.— aman1711
- I like it. Actually not getting Holiday might mean not winning it all again. But frankly I can't forget the lean years and I am glad to keep prospects and just to think the Phillies might be in the pennant race for many years to come. In the past the Phillies have overrated prospects but if Drabek and Happ are even just better than average we will have them for years after Halladay has a career ending injury in the next 3 years.— sportsdead
- Great move by Ruben! Add Cliff Lee the Cy Young winner and a right handed bat. Keep Happ, Brown, and Drabek. Could not ask for more. Prospects are just that...prospects. You've got to stoke the fire while it's hot and Ruben got us a great pitcher without sacrificing our best youngsters. Bye bye Halladay, it was nice not knowing you. Now what do we do with the rotation? Lee, Hamels, Blanton, Happ, Moyer, Martinez, Lopez? Okay, so forget Lopez. That still leaves one to go. I assume we make a spot for Pedro since you need a right hander in there. Happ or Jamie to the pen? Another deal in the works? Got to wonder about the next move. Could this be the end for Jamie?— AlanInFlorida
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- They should still go get Roy!— Higher Ground
- This is a great deal, well done Amaro. We now have one of the top rotations in the league with depth, Martinez and Park, in case of injury. And the potential of adding Drabek to the mix next year. We win now and maintain the potential too k,eep winning for years.— Charles2375
- All in all this is a good trade. We didn't give up too much and got a good solid pitcher in Lee. Hated giving up Marson. But you got to give to get.— Jerseymagic
- Like the trade but kinda worried about having 4 lefties— whopper
- Now that we have Lee, that will give us 4 lefthanded starters. I don't see that happening. I still think that Happ will help us get Halliday if we want to do it. We do have other prospects to offer such as Slavery and Taylor. The Toronto GM tried to put a gun to Amaro attempting to pry Drabek away and it blew up in his face. So now the ball is back in Toronto's hands. If he wants to trade Halliday he better call Ruben and ask him who he would give away.— Bubba
- This is so great. Can't wait to see Cliff Lee pitch for the Phillies.— ktdb05
- Do not overlook the acquisition of Ben Francisco in this deal. A legit right-handed bat off the bench is something this team has sorely lacked. I cannot tell you how many times I cringed when I saw Chris Coste or Bruntlett come up to pinch-hit in a big spot. Mayberry often looked overmatched, too. Last year Francisco hit 15 HRs. This season he has 10 HRs and 13 stolen bases on a bad Indians team. He will help us.— PhightinPhil
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- Stop all the whining folks...the Phils just picked up last year's AL Cy Young winner and did not have to give up Drabek, Happ or Brown. They are by far the best franchise in the city. Nice going Ruben!!— spliffbunker1
- Dudes, they said it was for lee pending medical review. that means it is for lee.— Fritz and Alice
- As important as acquiring Lee is, designating Bruntlett for assignment may be the key to winning another World Series.— PhightinPhil
- Calm down everybody. This is the Cy Young winner in 2008...Halladay was not. Toronto wanted too much and Halladay was not worth mortgaging the Phils future over. This is a great deal! Lee and Cole will be great, plus AJ and Bam-Bam are pitching very well.— dapmman
- Fantastic trade - The Phils don't need God, they need a stud.— Phillyborn
- This is a dumb move. Too many lefties. Just like picking up Ibanez was dumb. [/end sarcasm]— pgcd3
- this is a great deal!! we keep our stud prospects and get a pitcher who was 22-3 last year and has an era of 3.14 with more innings pitched than halladay and is younger and makes less money..i love it and more importantly the dynasty will stay intact b/c we can use our stud prospects to fill in holes down the road. P H I L L I E S ! ! !— dps2080
- Can we stop hearing about Halladay now? It was almost as annoying as TO soap opera— cogs_bars
- Love this trade!!!!!! You keep your stud prospects and get Lee who was 1a on the radar. Of course I would have liked to see Roy here, but te GM for the Jays is so freaking clueless that he won't be around after this season. Well done Ruben . . well done.— mdg625553
- To add to what JimG had to say in the lefty/righty splits. In 2008 left handed batters hit .272 againsy him and right handed batters hit .245! So he actually did better against left handed hitters.— kzimm63
thank zeus, clear heads prevail. the future isn't blown. we got a pitcher better than lohse, and blanton put together. and he's a bit younger than halladay. when all the other guys are healthy, and signed for longer deals, this team will be right there for the next 5 years, and probably beyond with a still good farm system.— Evilvet- ITS HALLADAY...wow. all these articles and people still can't spell it correctly. Great trade though, now we just need to get that bullpen help. Great trade for the present and keeping bigtime prospects for the future. Hopefully the prospects turn out well.— jzamorski
Too many lefties in the rotation now. The Phils are forming a rotation to beat their own left handed heavy lineup.— RAS- Awesome! But now what? If Pedro does make it back we have 7 quality starters...there must be another trade in the works... (Moyer for a box of rocks sounds good to me)— 24more
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- Of course the Cleveland website is saying how much they are going to miss Lee, and how they got ripped off.....they weren't brow-beaten with information about the Phillies prospects for the past 2 weeks. The media in this city is running out of ideas, and are scared of the internet.— kozykoz26
- Ben Francisco is a stiff— repski
- Why not trade the whole team for Halladay. Obviously he is all any tema needs to win it all. Oh, wait a sec. Toronto hasn't won anything with him. What a binch of idiots on here. You get the AL Cy Young winner, keep all your top prospects and Happ as well, and there is nothing but crying on here. Tip of the cap to Ruben for pulling off a fantastic deal.— RW
- Halladay starts next Monday vs. Colorado!— IdahoMoose
- For all of the people who are obsessed with lefty/righty splits...the most important factor is the talent of the player. Did Hamels have a rough time in the post-season last year because he's left-handed? Lee won a Cy Young last year as a lefty. Santana has done pretty well as a lefty. Randy Johnson was a pretty good lefty. If you're a top-notch pitcher, you can get people out...period. Plus, look at a guy like Hamels and his change-up is better to righties than lefties because he can throw it down and away to righties. All of the same morons who think Lee will suddenly become a bad pitcher and get rocked because he's a lefty are the same people who though we'd get killed by lefties this year because we signed Ibanez and let Burrell go. GOOD PLAYERS ARE GOOD PLAYERS. Get over the obsession with whether they are left-handed or right-handed.— JimG
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only 547 comments? step it up guys- Phillies can still trade for Halliday!! Lee & Halliday, could you imagine. Ruben Amaro would be a genius!!— PhillyFan1105
- Remember last year when everyone said "who the f is Joe Blanton"? So, don't assume this wasnt a good move right off the bat (no pun intended).— nephillychick
- You geeks love these prospects and over value them...Haladay equals 2 WS....a RH hitting team will teal the phils up— repski
- Relief pitching is on the way!!!!
- If only the Phillies could afford it I would love to pick up Halladay. I bet Toronto will reduce what they are asking for!
- RUBIN HAS DONE A GREAT JOB WITH THIS TRADE BUT YOU HAVE TO THINK WITH ALL THE LEFTYS THERE IS ANOTHER TRADE IN THE WORKS OTHERWISE WHAT DO YOU DO WITH LEE, HAMELS, HAPP, MOYER, BLANTON, LOPEZ, MARTINEZ?. SURE HOPE SOMEONE HAS THE MASTER PLAN FOR THE FINISHED PRODUCT. DON'T FORGET WE STILL NEED BENCH HELP AND A QUALITY PLAYER JUST MIGHT REQUIRE HAPP IN THE TRADE. THERE IS ALSO THE CLOSER ISSUE WHICH DOESN'T HAVE TO BE SOLVED WITH A TRADE DIRECTLY. IT'S DEFINATELY A DAY TO CELEBRATE.— Wally 24
- the only way this is a GOOD trade is if Halladay stays put...If he goes to Boston...we lose, Dodgers....we lose, Yankees we lose....— repski
- Love Halladay much more! YET!!!!!!!! This trade for Cliff Lee and Ben Francisco is a work of genius!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Great job. Cliff Lee was the pitcher I did not want the Dodgers to pick up. Great job!
- Brilliant pickup. Anyone who has seen Lee the last year and a half will tell you he's a legitimate #1 starter. He's won his Cy Young more recently than Halladay, is 5m per year cheaper, and didn't cost you any of the 4 most valued prospects in the farm system. Not only that the Phillies got the right handed power bat they had been looking for off the bench. A+++ trade by Amaro and company.— Rod72
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- BFlint, lay off the drugs...— Will.i.Am
Cliff Lee, just a year away from a Cy Young. I'm offically chubbed up.- This might work out OK, but it essentially is the Phillies thumbing their nose at the players and fans. They could have gotten a superstar at what I think is a low price. Instead they have a decent starter who has had two Halladay-type seasons in 6 years as a regular starter. Let's put it this way, if they started the season with Lee on the roster, they would be trying to get Halladay today. If they started the season with Halladay on their roster, they would be standing pat today. So we got an upgrade, but overall its a disappointment. Go Pedro!— jtj06
- If Toronto trades Doc to either of the teams in their division, they should run their GM out of town! You never trade within the division.— SlinkTMP
- OK, bring me back to Earth here. None of the prospects Toronto wanted are in this deal, could something still be in the works?— smfree31
- All you guys who are saying that this is the better trade better be praying that Halladay doesn't go to the Dodgers or even Boston.— psu05
- good pickup for the Phightens,would of love to have gotten Doc,but this is a close second.— bdawkisgod
- I can't believe that anybody would not like this trade. I know he is another lefty but we get to keep Drabek, Taylor, and Brown and still get the American League Cy Young winner from 2008 for a bunch of lower tier (except for Knapp) prospects. Can somebody say "fleece" and "Cleveland" in the same sentence?— kzimm63
- 6 man rotation: Lee,Hamels,Blanton,Happ,Martinez or Lopez, and Moyer to face Marlins...Nats...DBacks..any young team Moyer can dominate.— Will.i.Am
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- I agree with Rauuul There were soo many years when we had to sit while other teams made the deals and all we got were washed up players and we had to give away the schillings and Rolens in deals without not getting much back. If Toronoto could have gotten what they wanted i.e. Drabek, Happ, Brown they would have been golden. Cant blame them for trying, they didn't want to pull off a schilling deal. I give kudos and boos to the Pirates. Jack Wilson is great on a winning team since his leadership and defense make up for the lack of offense but how long can a team rebuild? if feel for the Pirate cause that was us in most of the 80's and post 1993 till a few years ago.— TheFansVoice
- HERE WE ARE WITH NEWS ON A HUGE TRADE BY THE PHILS AND C*S*N IS SELLING BLENDERS.... GO FIGURE.— Wally 24
- I think Lee is the better deal. We got a good pitcher on for more than this season and didn't have to sell the farm to do so and we got to keep an already well performing pitcher (Happ) in the rotation. I hope he pitches a no-hitter tonight now that he knows that he is staying.— roque32
- Michael Taylor...really gets no love..all he does is produce.— repski
- We still have to go get Halladay for Happ and Drabek and a class A prospect. Pedro will be traded for bullpen relief.— BFlint
- Awesome deal by Rube! he keeps his top 3 prospects, gets a former Cy Young winner (last years not 5 years ago) who gets paid less gets to keep him for 1.5 years. Plus addresses his 4th OF hole with a young inexpensive good OF that has power. This gives Charlie the ability to rest Ibanez against Lefties and have a very balanced lineup while not losing a ton of pop and gaining some team speed. Donald's only potential position was 3B, Marson is behind equally young Chooch, Carrasco and Knapp were not regarded as surefire like Drabek. Now they have taylor to shore up the bullpen if a deal arises. Great job!— rhcjr2
- Great trade by Ruben. Get a stud pitcher and keep Happ, Drabek, Brown, and Talyor. Looks like Francisco will be the righty of the bench and Mayberry will be optioned back to AAA. No way the designate Bruntlett he is their only utility guy, with out him you have no backup for Chase and J Roll.— dhayes1603
Thank you Ruben for Cliff Lee and keeping the prospects that Holliday would hace required. you can breathe deep., Happ staysjohnnyu- Run Support so far this season... Jamie Moyer: 8.50 Cole Hamels: 8.47 Joe Blanton: 7.76 Cliff Lee: 5.03 Enjoy Philadelphia, Mr. Lee.— goldy51
- I think now that the Phils are out of it....the Bosox will steal Halladay— repski
Yeah a bunch of you guys don't seem to get it. This was the best deal we were going to get. Baseball is completely unpredictable. We very well could have gotten Hallady and he would injure himself. Cliff is the right choice and the one I was hoping for, rotation of Blanton, Hamels, Moyer, Happ, Lee...and then we have Brett Meyers in the BP and Pedro Martinez? You guys are crazy. This is going to be a great year.- Hey downthemiddle, thanks for the heads-up! Everyone needs to immediately read the comments on Cleveland.com. From their POV it's the "worst trade ever", and are saying things like, "Someone call me when we get new ownership" & "Why even be a fan anymore?" ...GO PHILS!!!— Rauuuul
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- Lee makes no difference if boston gets halladay...Lester, Beckett, Halladay = GAME OVER!— rodeo king
- Posted by Captain 03:08 PM, 07/29/2009 BTW, if no one said. Mayberry and Lopez are Iron Pigs again. So he'll take Lopez's spot in the rotation.— Captain
- If its true J.P Riccardi turned down and offer of these four players plus Happ, Paul Beeston should fire him on the spot.— downthemiddle
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- Now really blow everyone out of the water.Go back to Toronto with Drabeck, Happ, D.Brown and whoever for Halliday. Get him, with Hamels, Lee, Blanton. With them, who needs to worry about the future.— watsonmr
- So, whose spot does Lee take? And then what to do with Martinez?— bobcitydoc
- Hammels and Lee are very similar in style....I don't like the idea of facing that Cardinals line-up Pujols, Holliday with those two...I would have like to see Martinez in the deal...Francisco??— repski
- If there is ANY way to swap Happ, Dom, Taylor and anyone but Drabek for Halladay, they gotta do it. We'd have Hamels, Lee, Halladay, Blanton and Moyer/Pedro and then Drabek is ready to step in once we lose one of them after next season. Keeps a solid rotation for the present AND the future.— wking410
- Folks don't fret!! This guy will be great!!! Halladay won't be traded and if he is it's to the American League. Worry about the World Series when we get there!!!— bossrjc
- GREAT TRADE. Lee has given up 2 or less in 12 of his 22 starts, plus five others where he only gave up three. He has the lowest run support of any pitcher in baseball. With the Phils lineup, he's have 12-13 wins at this point.— NMPartners
- right on Rauuuul. JimG I think I know you. Juniata boy?— beezer77
- Some of you would not be happy unless the Phils offered Utley, Howard, Ibanez, Rollins, Victorino, Happ, Hamels and 35 minor leaguers for Halliady, three broken bats and a resin bag.— Delaware Jim
- BTW, if no one said. Mayberry and Lopez are Iron Pigs again.— Captain
- Next moves: recall Cairo, designate Mayberry, dump The Brunt, trade Taylor for Sherill and sign Morgana, the kissing bandit.— mick314
- If anyone thinks this is a bad deal, go read the comments Indians fans are posting on cleveland dot com. Talk about salt in the wound, they run Chuck out of town as the Indians manager and he kindly repays them by winning the world series then lets his front office absolutely steal their current cy young winner so chuck can go win another series.— downthemiddle
- If the Phils are REALLY smart, they will stay in the market for Halliday just to drive the price up. If they drop from talks with Toronto, the price will fall increasing the chances the Dodgers or Boston will get him.— Iggy
- Lee doesn't have a "no trade" clause Halladay does so we can dealLee if we can't resign him— Jim7390
- Also interesting. Lee is 31 next month so not much younger than Roy and on 950 this morning he said he "almost certainly will test Free agency" after 2010...just like Halladay. These were just some of the week arguments some of you had for favoring Lee over Roy. I still like the trade. But I also think you get the best available guy you can.— Captain
- Some people never learn. Most Philly fans that have posted here seem to be excited and satisfied with this deal even though we all would have loved to have Halladay...obviously. There were always be those certain fans who are always just miserable and complaining all the time and never satisfied with anything. These are the same people who complained about Blanton being traded for last season, the same people who complained about Ibanez being signed, the same people who called for Werth to be dumped after 3-4 bad games the first week of the season, the same people who claimed that Rollins was washed up, etc. Go Phightin Phils! Bring home another World Series title!— JimG
- Bruntlett stays up for now since he is the back-up middle infielder, but when Rube has some time on his hands after the deadline, he needs to seriously think about getting rid of Bruntlett and bringing up Cairo.— Joe_Blow
- Nice, glad to see a 3.1 era pitcher come in here, and 2.7 last year, that's pretty good, haladay was around 2.6 this year and last, so, i'm happy, we'll have better run support than cleveland too... now if only cole can improve from his 5.~ era, we'll be in business— smithazz
- Great trade. It insures competitiveness into November and secures the future. Sure, I would have preferred Halladay, but in 2010, 2011, 2012...there's a more than probable chance that we're an elite team with Drabek, Taylor, Brown, Shane, Utley, Cole and hopefully, J-Roll and Ryan Howard.----We are not the Mets and Yankees; we don't blow our wad for the shiniest toy out there. This move is classic Philly---prudent for the present and even wiser for the future.*****But something tells me that there are more trades in the next two days: getting Francisco (to me) thinks that Dobbs or Mayberry may be in play for a utility guy whose name isn't Bruntlett.— hankOceann
- Great move— ec420de
- The idiots who don't like this trade must have just started following the Phils after we won the WS. How can anyone be unhappy about this?! We got a top of the rotation starter for the stretch run for next to nothing, and we are in a position to compete for a World Series for the next 4-5 years! Remember what Blanton did for us last year people, and he isn't in the same league as Lee. I had to sit through too many Von Hayes & Steve Jeltz at bats, and watch too many Pat Combs & Don Carmen pitching performances not to love this— Rauuuul
- Captain I agree with half of what you said. If lee wants to "test" the market the Phils can trade him at next years trade deadline or get the two #1's for him plus he's cheaper or now they can package a Happ Mayberry with Victorino or Werth this offseason when they want more money and get another stud pitcher & Bring up Taylor plus you still have Savery Drabek & Brown still waiting in the wings. Lee is also way cheaper next year.— Jim7390
- Without Lee even throwing a pitch, this has to be one of the smartest deals the Phillies ever made..They are 7 games up, show no signs of slowing and added a Stud for 4 minor league players. We have the makings of a Dynasty in Philly because of deals like this...Go Ruben, your the man...!!!!— TexasYankee
- listen to cleveland sports radio!!!! its great! http://sports.espn.go.com/stations/player?station=cleveland&referringsite=streamingradioguide.com— kermur
Last year’s Cy Young Award winner AND the much ballyhooed right handed bat off the bench for 4 minor leaguers?! I’ll take it…Hamels, Lee, Blanton, Happ & Moyer/Martinez. Am looking forward to watching the WORLD F**KING CHAMPS defend their crown!…p.s. Drabek, see you next year buddy…Go Phillies!- Well I love the deal. Lee, Hamels, Blanton, Martinez as 4 of the 5 NICE. Now though I would LOVE to see a Halladay deal add him to the mix but don't thinl unfotunately that will happen unless Toronoto's price REALLY drops. Right now you moved donald, Knapp, carasco and Marson. If you move much more you are really depleting you system. Now I hear read that they might send burntlett down to make room for the new righthanded bad. Unless there is another move in the works that might be tough. Who is you backup shortstop? Oh and the post that said Moyer, Pedor Bruntlett for halladay that person is on crack and why even bother posting that. Obviously a sad mets fan...— TheFansVoice
- If you think this is a bad trade for the Phillies, read the comments from Cleveland fans here: http://www.cleveland.com/tribe/index.ssf/2009/07/cliff_lee_ben_francisco_headed.html It's the Curt Schilling trade from our perspective all over again.— PeterGreen
- According to WIP, Amaro made a last try offer to Toronto of the same package they gave to Cleveland for Lee, plus Happ and were turned down. This is a great deal. Lee is a stud. He may not be quite as good as Halladay, but the cost is much lower. He is still going to be the best pitcher on the Phillies. And don't ignore that they also got Ben Francisco, who was a starter for Cleveland and will add some much needed depth to their bench. This makes the Phillies instant favorites to repeat as champions. I'm still pinching myself that this type of deal is actually being done by the Phillies. Great work Reuben!— Allakhazam
- 7-9 with a 3.14 ERA - 3.14 in the AL? That's an amazing stat! I love this deal...Now we are in the driver's seat IF Halladay is to get dealt. Anybody think the Cleveland GM thought he was getting Happ and not Knapp?! ;-) PK— PhillyTheKid
- knucklehead.. the outfielder stays. he's a right handed bat off the bench. bye bye bruntlett.— kermur
- WIP is saying that the Phils offered the same players + Happ to the Blue Jays for Halladay and the Blue Jays turned it down.— Captain
- Great move...well done— amblereagles
- a great move by the Phillies. Lee is pitching well of late and he throws deep into games. He is not a consolation prize and is coming off a Cy Young year and 22-3 record. And we have kept our future intact as well. I would have had reservations about giving up arms like Happ and Drabek. And Francisco is a pretty darn good reserve outfielder and righty bat off the bench too. I am thrilled with how Amaro has done as our GM..Ibanez and now Lee..cant beat it.— bradco
- Wow, what an incredible deal! Fantastic move by the staff.— Rod72
- An outstanding trade for the Phils. But it looks like something else is in the works. Why another outfielder? I'm guessing either he won't be here long, or Stairs won't, unless they are offering Werth or Victorino, plus Happ and Brown or Taylor, for Halliday. Don't count the Phils out of the Halliday deal quite yet.— vnvets
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- Outstanding trade -- a most impressive job, Rube! As an added bonus, we can tell Toronto's GM to enjoy paying Halladay to be on his meaningless team for the rest of their meaningless season.— spadty
- Nice job Rube. Now, in a last ditch effort, offer Toronto Happ, Kendrick, Bastardo, and their choice of either Brown or Taylor for Halladay. Those pitchers are 31-19 combined for their big league careers already, and Toronto wants major league ready talent. It's more than Toronto will get next year when Halladay is a rental. It clears a spot in the rotation (assume Lopez is moved or optioned for Pedro, who can go to the pen if we get both Halladay & Lee). If (in a perfect world) we get both, let them pitch a year and see who is the better bet for the long term deal. Let the other walk and take the two first round draft picks. That still leaves Drabek, Savery, Flande, Carpenter and Mathieson throwing in the minors and one of the outfield prospects to come up in a year or so when someone will inevitably overpay Werth thinking he can be a clean-up hitter. With a wealth of talent, it's good to be the king. Karma is on their side... P.S. How do you think Halladay is feeling now that it looks like he might be stuck in baseball hell north of the border?— Joe_Blow
- well the one part you have to think of with Lee is he is a flyball pitcher. He is leaving a pitcher friendly park to come here. I wouldnt be surprised if his ERA is 4.00 or higher for the rest of the year— wolfburn
- Bravo, Bravo, Bravo. Cy Young winner, 3.14 ERA, locked up for next year, didnt give up Happ-Drabek-Brown-Taylor, Marson and Donald were ideal trade bait due to Rollins and Chooch. Well done Ruben. Way to NOT get extorted by the Jays.— Flackattack
- thank god we didnt get halladay, now we got someone just as good for much less, nd we got 2 keep one of our top pitchers in Happ— lj23
- Love this deal.— bleufunk
- Great Move!— Bobphxville
- Flip Lee for Halladay?— D-Egg
- The deal is made. I would rather it be this deal than the Halladay deal. I think keeping Happ and Drabek is great. I do have worries that Lee give up a lot of hits but he does give up very few walks. His ERA will be higher at the Vet - Cleveland has a neutral or slightly positive hitters park. I would say Lee is a 2 or 3 but with the Phillies bats he will win a lot. Sure we are less "guaranteed" Word Series repeaters but for once the Phils will have an excess of starters. Hamels Happ, Lee, Blanton, Lopez, & Moyer - can we just make him a very expensive pitching coach? Next year add Drabek and we have one of the better pitching rotations.— sportsdead
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- listen to the cleveland espn affiliate... fans are outraged! http://sports.espn.go.com/stations/player?station=cleveland&referringsite=streamingradioguide.com— kermur
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- so now trade lee and taylor for halladay. jays would save like 10 million dollara over 2 years, which is what they want anyways, and phils get the pitcher they really want.— Brainiac
- excellent trade...only guy I hate to give up in Knapp but he is just a kid...This deal balances the immediate needs with the long term...Toronto was the one not willing to be realistic...Amaro did the absolute right thing...he added a stud to the rotation rather than being left at the altar w/o anything... those fans who are disappointed...get over it fast...our GM stepped to the plate and made the team A LOT better w/o mortgaging the future...— TheLon
- WTF, even Rollins said do what you have to to get Halladay, stupid move on Amarao's part...— bellalala
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- Same sad story for centuries: white man steals from Indians.— George Jacobs
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- I'm thrilled by this deal. We got a lot stronger and are still stacked in the minor leagues. The Giants will not make the playoffs so we won't have to worry about their #1&2 starters. Our staff is better than Dodgers, Rockies and Cubs. Lee is awesome and now he gets some run support.— phillyylliph
- Let’s break down the playoffs… Starters 1. Hamels 2. Lee 3. Blanton 4. Happ Bullpen Pedro Moyer Park Romero Madson Lidge Myers? Do i even have to type the rest of the guys names? The Phillies are in great shape to continue buliding momentum towards October. Once October comes we are stacked and we are the team to beat Taylor is going to be a beast Brown is going to be nasty Drabek is a #3 at worst, #1 at best How did this happen?— EagleBeliever
- i wonder if the jays would still take happ, taylor, and a B prospect for halladay...— dantarng
- great trade, they did it without given up Drabek— Bil
- much better deal for Lee...Bluejays just screwed themselves...they will get nothing for Doc next year compred to now and then he leaves via free agency...nice work Ruben Amaro on getting a deal done for a Cy Young winner while keeping the future intact— tfernan303
- how can you people say this is a bad deal, we kept HAPP DRABEK AND BROWN and got a CY YOUNG WINNER. Yea hes not quite Halladay, but close enough. That idiot Riccardi doesn't know what hes doing.— mcginnir
- Ricciardi overplayed his hand and will be forced to make a deal with Boston for lesser talent. I got to hand it to Rube, he made a great trade!— chasing history
- Still time to deal Happ (don't need 4 lefties) for reliable relief, set up or closer ++— bamaphillyfan
- I love this trade. Get a #1 started from the AL for 4 minor leaguers. His era in the AL is 3.14. That is below 3.00 in the NL. Also, get a righthanded bat off the bench w/ power. We keep Haap in the rotation and keep most of the top prospects in the system. Lee, Hamels, Blanton, Haap, (Moyer, Martinez, Lopez). Nice work Ruben.— jpweisel
- I think this is a great trade !! The Cleveland fans are furious check out their comments at: http://www.cleveland.com/tribe/index.ssf/2009/07/cliff_lee_ben_francisco_headed.html— rick2744
- Posted by phillyfan412 02:36 PM, 07/29/2009 What a trade! Anyone who doesn't like this trade is a first-class idiot, period. Look at what they were able to do. They got the reigning Cy Young Award winner and the right-handed bat they've been looking for, all without giving up Drabek, Happ, Taylor, or Brown. It's a win-win all the way around! Just look at what the rotation will be: Hamels Lee Happ Blanton Pedro/Moyer......... First let me say I like the trade fine. But people that are saying they didn't give up much are ill-informed to say the least. Knapp is considered a prospect slightly below Drabek(but also younger), Marson probably would have been the catcher next year and Carassco is still projected to be a #3 starter(which is all Happ is) This is the problem with sucking the d of prospects like the people against the Halladay trade were doing. You all fell for the Drabek and Brown are awesome blah, blah, blah hype. When in reality these prospects they gave up are highly thought of as well..... Very much so. So the trade is fine but to suggest they gave up nothing shows that you like who writers tell you to like(Drabek) and have no real knowledge.— Captain
- Now, if we could send Happ and Mayberry to Baltimore for George Sherrill, that would be a great day for Amaro. You figure Lee would replace Happ in the rotation, Lopez will keep the #5 spot warm until Pedro is ready and Sherrill would be the insurance policy in case Lidge keeps struggling. Francisco will be the 4th outfielder and RH bat off the bench, which means that Mayberry doesn’t have a future in the organization.— EL Zorro
- twothousandeight - Look at the team he plays on. With our defense you are going to see great numbers from this guy. He is a STUD!— ChrisM
- great move - I was very nervous about giving up Drabek AND Brown. We all know there's a 2/3-yr window, but that shouldn't mean we have to completely rebuild at that time. We got (not the best but) a high quality starter, kept our effective pitchers, and retained a shot at extending our success in the future. Phils brass should get some credit - they're building a very credible long-term organization.— philly_in_DC
- broad...this is a great trade, but it has nothing to do with keeping Happ and Drabek. They are still unknowns. Happ has pitched well so far, but Ruben Amaro started his career smoking hot too, which had people wanting to trade Lenny Dykstra. Jason Knapp by a lot of accounts had a higher ceiling than Drabek and certainly Happ, who will probably no more than a #4 starter once people get a book on him. Are we a better team today? Absolutely and that's what makes this a great deal. I still would have moved Happ and Drabek for Halladay though. He's a better pitcher. At the end of the day, we still cheaped out, just at a higher scale.— booman55
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- Brilliant. Said all along to get Lee. Scott Boras is Halladay's agent and we woundn't have him for more than a year. We keep a #3 starter proven, get to see if Drabek is for real along with Brown and gave up prospects. The guy won the Cy for Cleveland, is in his prime, is less $ and will pitch for the best team in baseball. Lefty, righty who cares. Dodgers can't handle what we had let alone adding Le. Amaro has the best baseball advisors in the business advising him and it showed. BJ GM just got punked!— cbray
- If I were Amaro, I'd call up Ricciardi now and offer him Happ, Taylor, and Kendrick for Halladay. That's two major-league experienced pitchers and a stud OF blocked here in Philly that would allow them to rid themselves of the albatross contracts of Rios and Wells if they want. Ricciardi's leverage is non-existent now.
- lIDGE'S knee is bad ----Go get Sherrill from Baltimore...pen needs help— John Romano
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- Are you kidding me, this is AWESOME!!!! We gave up practially nothing for last year's Cy Young winner. And as a bonus we might be able to get rid of Bruntlett!?!?— Rauuuul
- I'm tempted to like the deal and that they held onto Kapp and Drabek, but really, do we really need another lefty starter? The Phils only concern needs to be getting past the Dodgers and back to the Series. I gotta look up the stats but I seem to remember that Manny used to KILL this guy when he was with the Red Sucks. Lee is good, but Halladay was the move the Phils needed to make.— phily_phan_n_nyc
- It's over guys. The Phillies aren't going to trade Drabek and Happ for Halladay....let alone absorb another $12+ million salary on top of Lee's $9M. However...if they could add Lee to the Halladay deal and keep Drabek, THAT would be an interesting opportunity to explore.— dri_as_a_bone
- Dude, lets not forget that Moyer has won 10 games so far this season. The guy is a locust!— T3rdEyevisual
- Good deal for Phils - last year's Cy & a solid right hand bat. We're not done yet - watch for Mayberry & Lopez packaged for a reliever— Ed3
- Good Deal!! A #1 starter for 4 minor leaguers. Don't worry about the left handed tilt to the rotation, if you can pitch you can pitch. We also get a decent right handed bat off the bench instead of Bruntlett who is OK in the field but can't hit a lick. Go Phils!— Spoon47