Where the Red Sox sniff the Yankees follow. Brian Cashman, Yankees’ GM, will do his due diligence on Halladay if nothing more than to drive up the price for the Red Sox. The price for Halladay will be steep, but as of right now it looks like the Red Sox are willing to go there.

Driving up the price for the Red Sox should be the only reason the Yankees get involved in talks with the Blue Jays. They should not pull the trigger on a trade for Halladay just because the Red Sox want him. Let him go to the Red Sox. The Yankees have been discussing their payroll and adding Halladay would end the discussion of cutting it. Acquiring Halladay would also cost a package of top prospects including at least Austin Jackson, Jesus Montero and either Phil Hughes or Joba Chamberlain.

Halladay doesn’t fit into the plans the Yankees “say” they want to follow, but what the Yankees say and do don’t always agree. If the Yankees hadn’t won in 2009, it would be very likely they’d complete a deal for Halladay this winter. I’ve said it before; the team won in ’09 without Halladay. What makes people think the Yankees need him to do it again?

Instead of trading for Halladay, the Yankees should sign free agent pitcher John Lackey. The Yankees rotation would be CC Sabathia, AJ Burnett, John Lackey, Andy Pettitte and Joba Chamberlain/Phil Hughes. That is some rotation. They are going to have to pay Halladay after this season anyway so why not just pay Lackey now and not lose the prospects.

The argument for acquire Halladay is that prospects don’t always pan out and Halladay is a proven big league pitcher and former Cy Young Award winner. Jackson and Montero haven’t seen time in the bigs and Joba and Hughes’ roles are uncertain. While this is completely understood, there is an upside to these players that will pose the question, “What if?” These prospects can have great careers in other cities (the Yankees could always buy them back in the future).

If John Lackey was not available in free agency then the Yankees would be more apt to acquiring Halladay. Since Lackey is available, there’s a better chance the Yanks throw money at him to bring him to the Bronx.

Halladay may go to Boston and so be it. Yes, he’s a Yankee killer and he’ll shine in Boston, but the Yankees will do fine without him. I know I’m in the minority on this one.

The longer the Blue Jays wait, the less they’ll acquire in return for Halladay. Current Blue Jays general manager, Alex Anthopoulos, would like to get at least something for him before he jets into free agency and they are only compensated by a draft pick.

Just like the Yankees didn’t budge in July, they shouldn’t budge this winter. The main reason is they won without the guy! Why would they want to give up their better prospects and young arms for a him when they already know they can do it without him? It makes less sense now than it did over the summer for the Yankees not to pursue Halladay. Their two young arms, Hughes and Joba, have more postseason experience than Halladay. Don’t get me wrong, Halladay is a great pitcher. Top of the line. I’d rather see the Yankees sign free agent pitcher John Lackey than trade for Halladay. It’s better they only lose dollars, not players, to acquire a pitcher.

Here are two articles I wrote last July against the Yankees’ pursuit of Roy Halladay: The Yankees and Roy Halladay, Yankees Shouldn’t Celebrate the “Halladay”. I stand by my words and there is absolutely no reason the Yankees should acquire Roy Halladay, even if the Red Sox are on the verge of signing him. There should be no “swooping in” by the Yankees like they did with Teixeira. Brian Cashman will remain in the talks for Halladay to either drive up the price for the Red Sox and other bidders, or because the Yankees are genuinely interested in bringing Halladay to the Bronx.

The New York Post reports Scott Boras, agent of Johnny Damon, is making a case that his client deserves a contract similar to Jeter. Boras is looking to get Damon a deal for three or four years while the Yankees would like to bring him back for one or two years tops. Read the article

If Boras sticks to his guns then Damon’s days in pinstripes are over. Cashman isn’t going to dish out big bucks to Damon until he’s 40 years old. The Yankees have prospect Austin Jackson waiting in the wings and he should better ready in the next year or two. The Yankees can find a cheaper, younger alternative for left field.

Joel Sherman of the New York Post has also reported that the Tigers will be taking offers for Curtis Granderson and believes the Yankees will be interested. Read the article

I’m probably in the minority but I’m not so sure I like this. Granderson started hitting for power in ’09 and his average plummeted. In ’09 he hit 30 home runs and batted .249 with a .327 OBP. His OBP was over .360 in ’07 and ’08 and he hit 23 and 22 home runs those seasons. He hit .302 in ’07 and .280 in ’08. If he stole more bases I think it would be a no-brainer (20 SB in ’09, 12 SB in ’08, 25 SB in ’07).

Brian Cashman on Joba Chamberlain and Phil Hughes: “I look at them as starters that can relieve.” Read the article

This could change if the Yankees add a starting pitcher or two.

SI reports that Andy Pettitte is leaning on coming back to the Yankees for one more year.

Pettitte has supposedly told some Yankees he wants to play one more year.

The Yankees, looking for another starting pitcher, have been linked to having interest in free agent John Lackey, the Blue Jays’ Roy Halladay and SI thinks Derek Lowe of the Braves.

Some teams are concerned with Lackey’s durability. If the Blue Jays put Halladay out there, expect the Yankees to be bidders along with the Red Sox, Mets, and some other teams. I’d rather see the Yankees go with a young pitcher, like Hughes, Kennedy or maybe Brackman, rather than trade for Derek Lowe.

The Phillies acquired pitcher Cliff Lee from the Indians today, leaving one less team that will be involved in Halladay discussions.  The Blue Jays’ deadline to trade Roy Halladay has passed but the MLB trade deadline lasts until Friday.  There have been numerous rumors about where Halladay would be traded to but nothing is imminent.  The Yankees and Red Sox will remain players in the Halladay derby as long as they know that the other team each is still alive in the Halladay chase.

I have said since day one that I do not think the Yankees should trade for Halladay.  I wavered a bit when the idea of Halladay going to the Red Sox dawned on me but I am standing strong and my position has not changed.  Maybe my mind would change if I thought the Sox had a legitimate shot at acquiring Halladay but I don’t think that’s the case.  I don’t think Halladay gets traded and in the small chance he does, I don’t think he’ll be traded to the Red Sox.

It would be tough to see Halladay in Boston, it really would.  Knowing that the Yankees had the goods to get him but took a pass and he wound up in Boston would kill me.  But if it happens, it happens.  This could be a turning point for the Yankees.  I say this because when does the spending stop?  Their payroll is over $200 million.  Acquiring Halladay, then giving him an extension, pushes that number up more.  The spending has to stop somewhere.  For the Yankees to give up their young players for Halladay means that they will have to spend more money when the time comes that those young players would have made an impact on the team.  At the time the prospects would be making an impact, the Yankees will need to dig deep into their pockets for free agents to fill the void.  The spending continues and the payroll grows.  Even the Yankees have a limit and this might be telling us something.  The Yankees would love to have Halladay, no question.  But it would require the Yankees to dig back into the wallet, now and in the future.

This will be the second time we see the Yankees show some limitations.  They didn’t want to give up their prospects for Santana a couple of years ago.  They went with young pitchers in their rotation and although it didn’t work out, they still went for it and gave them a chance.  The youngsters didn’t do well and the Yankees made a huge splash in free agency over the winter.  The Yankees still gave it a shot though.  They showed some limitations.

So if the Yankees don’t trade for Halladay, that will be the second time they have showed some limitation in the last few years and gives me reason to believe they won’t have a $300 million payroll by 2014.  When will the spending stop?  I don’t know.  They could spend a fortune this upcoming offseason if they don’t win and people will say that they should have traded for Halladay and given him the money.  That’s not the point.  The point is, they gave it a shot.  They held on to the prospects.  Who knows, maybe their holding on to a gem.  Maybe they win with what they have.  Maybe they change their ways one day.  The Yankees will probably always have the highest payroll in baseball (as long as there is no cap and the Steinbrenners remain owners) but maybe they’ll slow down and let some other teams catch up.  Maybe we won’t always hear the line “Yea the Yankees won, they have the highest payroll”.

I want to see the Yankees stop buying the best and start growing the best like they once did.  Jeter, Mariano, Posada, and Pettitte were all home grown and major contributors in the 90′s dynasty.  I want to see that again.

Ricciardi needs to lower the asking price, not by that much, but by at least one or two players. For instance, Jon Heyman of SI reported that they have said they would trade Halladay to the Yanks for Joba, Hughes and two other players.  There is no way the Yankees do that right now.  Especially since both guys are pitching so well.  So why don’t the Blue Jays ask the Yankees for Joba and maybe Austin Jackson and another player.  Don’t ask for Joba and Hughes.  They are basically saying ‘we are not trading Halladay this season’, because they won’t get what they are asking for from the Phillies, Yankees or any other team.  If Halladay is traded, the Blue Jays will be accepting less than what they are demanding, but they will still receive a good amount of talent in the trade.