PHILADELPHIA – All it took was four teams, $60 million and a swap of Cy Young Award winners to finish off Roy Halladay’s long and winding trade saga.
He landed right where he wanted to pitch, with the two-time NL champion Philadelphia Phillies.
In one of baseball’s biggest trades involving top pitchers, the Phillies sent postseason ace Cliff Lee to Seattle and acquired Halladay from Toronto on Wednesday as part of a four-team deal.
Oakland also was included in the nine-player swap, which marked the first time that two Cy Young winners were dealt on the same day.
Money was a key factor, too. The Blue Jays sent $6 million to Philadelphia with Halladay, who then agreed to a $60 million, three-year contract extension through 2013.
“This is where we wanted to be,” Halladay said. “It was an easy decision for me. Once the opportunity came up for me to be part of this, it was something I couldn’t pass up.”
Halladay has never pitched in the postseason in his 12-year career with the Blue Jays. He coveted the chance to play for the 2008 World Series champs, hoping for an opportunity to win his own ring.
“I think the older you get, the longer you play in your career, the more important that becomes,” Halladay said. “The more I play, the more I realize how important that is to me.”
Toronto sent the 32-year-old Halladay to the Phillies for three minor leaguers: catcher Travis d’Arnaud, right-hander Kyle Drabek and outfielder Michael Taylor. The Blue Jays flipped Taylor to the Athletics for third baseman Brett Wallace.
The Phillies dealt Lee to Seattle for three prospects: right-hander Phillippe Aumont, outfielder Tyson Gillies and right-hander Juan Ramirez.
The Phillies, who actively pursued Halladay at the trade deadline in July, could have kept Lee but feared that he would leave in free agency next year.
Halladay went 17-10 with a 2.79 ERA last season. The righty led the AL with four shutouts and nine complete games. The six-time All-Star won the 2003 American League Cy Young.
“I’d hate to play my career based on where you get the most years,” he said. “I want to do it for what I believe are the right reasons. All the right reasons are here.”
Lackey, Cameron join Boston
Boston finalized an $82.5 million, five-year contract for pitcher John Lackey and a $15.5 million, two-year agreement for former Mariners center fielder Mike Cameron.
“I was always interested in coming here. Winning was definitely my first priority of a team to go to,” said Lackey, who was considered to be the top pitcher available in free agency.
Lackey was 11-8 with a 3.83 ERA last season and 42-22 during the past three seasons. But he’s just 2-6 with a 5.43 ERA in 11 career starts at Fenway Park, including the postseason.
The Red Sox also must figure out whether the Mike Lowell-to-Texas trade will go through and have been discussing whether to acquire Adrian Gonzalez from San Diego, a deal that could send Clay Buchholz and/or Jacoby Ellsbury to the Padres.
Angels add Series MVP
World Series MVP Hideki Matsui finalized a $6 million, one-year contract with the Los Angeles Angels, ending his seven-season run with the New York Yankees.
“This is the beginning of a new journey for me,” Matsui said through a translator. “I’d like to do my best in every way I can to bring another world championship to this team since they won in 2002.”
Around the horn
The Milwaukee Brewers completed a $7.5 million, two-year contract with reliever LaTroy Hawkins. … Detroit agreed to a $2.5 million, two-year deal with infielder Ramon Santiago, who had been eligible for salary arbitration. … Toronto added a pair of players, agreeing to a $2 million, one-year contract with catcher John Buck and a minor league deal with right-handed pitcher Lance Broadway. … After a second straight 100-loss season, the Washington Nationals are freezing or cutting prices on all single-game tickets for the second consecutive year. … A police report says St. Louis Cardinals third baseman David Freese had a blood-alcohol level of 0.23 when he was arrested last weekend for driving while intoxicated. That is nearly three times Missouri’s legal limit of 0.08.
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