…. but I don’t particularly want him to leave. He’s better and cheaper than Suppan. It would be nice to acquire the arms in the offseason that would render Looper expendable (since Bush and Suppan are obviously still going to be in the rotation), but I don’t see that happening.

The problem with thinking that Halladay could be flipped for similar prospects next year is that it may not be true. Halladay may draw 4 front line prospects, if he’s dealt. Sabathia, in his contract year, didn’t return that much. If we were to acquire Halladay and then deal him before the deadline next year, we might just get back about half of what we gave up to get him. If it’s going to take Gamel/Escobar/Lawrie/Parra to get him, which is what I’ve seen in a couple of places now, that should be an easy, quick “no”, at least in my opinion.

and that’s why I’d like to see them trade Hardy for a guy like Dursherberger (or whatever his name is) out in Oakland. I haven’t any idea if that’s even remotely what Oakland would take in return for him, but it would be nice to have one other pitcher to look forward to watching on a consistent basis next year other than Gallardo. Hell, if Parra gets straight, a top three of Gallardo, Parra, and the guy from Oakland could be amazing next season. But that’s a lot of “ifs”.

But trading away the farm for Halladay or Lee right now would be insane for all the reasons stated a million times henceforth on this site.

And heck, maybe the Crew will pull an Astros and go wild in August and September and win this lousy division. I know it’s their usual habit to swoon late, but baseball’s wildly unpredictable sometimes.