It's that special time of year where the amount of gossip in baseball could rival any high school cafeteria, which leaves anyone with an opinion on baseball with plenty to write about. These days most of this baseball gossip is centred on the only starting pitcher on the Blue Jays that didn't pitch in AAA ball last year; Roy Halladay. New Jay's GM Alex Anthopoulos has once again made Roy available and unlike JP Ricciardi in July, he is not asking for every player that his trading partner signed in the 2007 draft. Depending on which MLB tabloid you read, either the Yankees, Phillies, or Angels are the front-runners to land Roy, with the Red Sox, Mets and Rays also kicking the tires on a potential trade. People are also split on whether or not Roy would require a contract extension before a trade could be negotiated or if he would veto a trade to any west coast teams or non-contenders.

While the Yankees dealt away Austin Jackson to land Curtis Granderson, they still have the players to make a deal (pitchers Camberlain and Hughes, as well as catching prospect Jesus Montero). The Angels have also potentially offered Erick Aybar, Joe Saunders and a prospect, and the Phillies have offered a package centred on J.A. Happ. While some are suggesting the Yankees have the best chance at landing "Doc", if I were the Jays I would be cautious of Yankees trade proposals. One reason I am skeptical is that the Yankees were unwilling to move either Chamberlain or Hughes in a trade for Johan Santana two years ago and are now willing to part with them. Did the Yankees hype machine turn both pitchers into franchise prospects, when now they look more like merely solid major league pitchers? (Admittedly, the verdict is still out). On top of this, the Yankees only seem willing to give up either Joba Chamberlain or Phil Hughes and not both. Let's also not forget that party animal Chamberlain could become entirely useless once he gets a taste for Canadian beer. There are also holes in the game of another potential trade centrepiece, catching prospect Jesus Montero. While he has the potential to be a great hitter, he has many scouts believing that he won't be able to stick as a catcher in the major leagues, which greatly diminishes his value. Assuming that a contract extension does not need to be negotiated and that Halladay would not veto any potential trades, from the Jays perspective it appears as though the Angels would be the best trading partner. The players LA is offering are young, affordable, major league proven and still under club control. Why roll the dice on Yankee prospects, when you can get proven players from LA? There is also talk that the Jays could then even flip Joe Saunders for more prospects if they so desired. This also keeps Doc out of the AL East.

Like July, one thing that has me confounded is why Boston isn't making a stronger push for the Doc. Josh Beckett is a year away from free agency, Tim Wakefield is a year away from being 50, and there are questions about how Dice-K will pitch this year. On top of this Roy is a certified Yankee killer, and would change the complexion of the AL East race. And I'm sure what's most pressing to Red Sox fans is that if Boston doesn't go after Roy and he ends up with New York, their rotation would be scary good. If I'm the Bosox, Doc is definitely worth giving up Clay Bucholtz. Wherever and whenever Roy gets dealt, let's hope by that time that Scott Boras has generated enough smack talk to keep the rest of the winter interesting.

Follow Nick's baseball blog at Covering The Bases with Nick Dika , and the Arkells Fall Classic Tour 2009 (Arkells vs. Canada) at www.arkells.ca. The Arkells are signed to Toronto-based Dine Alone Records.