One source told Ed Price of MLB Fanhouse that "the Phillies are leaders at this point" in the Roy Halladay sweepstakes. However, that doesn't mean the Jays ace will be dealt. As another source points out, J.P. Ricciardi is not in a hurry to trade Halladay, so there's an equal chance he stays in Toronto.
And the haul Halladay could bring? The Erik Bedard trade (Adam Jones, George Sherrill and others) and the Dan Haren trade (Carlos Gonzalez, Brett Anderson and others) could be benchmarks.
Jon Heyman of SI.com heard from an executive who believes the Jays would hesitate to deal Halladay within their own division. Does that make the Phillies favorites?
The executives who spoke with Joel Sherman of the New York Post believe the Phillies are the frontrunners for Halladay. The Phillies want to win now and they think Halladay's ground ball-based approach would thrive in their homer-friendly park.