Among the many news items on Roy Halladay that has surfaced in the last week is the presence of a "list" of teams Toronto management showed him and he apparently looked at... and then checked off those he would or would not accept a trade to.

The list hasn't been made public, but within this Toronto Globe and Mail story, it appears Philadelphia would be Halladay's destination of choice.

Interesting. But not surprising, since the Phils obviously satisfy his No.1 priority - to play for a winner. And they will surely give him offensive support with five All-Stars and Jimmy Rollins in a loaded lineup.

I say "interesting" because it wasn't all that long ago that players like Scott Rolen and Curt Schilling couldn't get out of Philadelphia fast enough. The first time I really felt this culture change was in December, when Raul Ibanez signed as a free agent and spoke about how he really wanted to come to the Phillies.

What a difference a championship makes, huh?




By the way, Halladay was pretty sharp tonight: 9 innings, four hits, one earned run, 10 Ks, three walks in a 4-2, 10-inning loss to the Rays. I honestly thought there was a chance Toronto would trot him back out in the 10th inning - he has done it before.

It feels like a deal is close around the ballpark. Toronto seems keen on Kyle Drabek, which may be the sticking point.

But if Halladay prefers Philly and it becomes apparent that few other teams can match up with Toronto, the Phillies could deal from a position of strength. If that happens, they can hold onto Drabek, the guy they don't want to trade, a possibly get Halladay for a package of J.A. Happ, Carlos Carrasco/Jason Knapp, Dominic Brown/Michael Taylor and Jason Donald.