Blanton for Halladay?

Before you get too excited, the Phillies will not be trading Joe Blanton to the Toronto Blue Jays for Roy Halladay. However, that does not mean that the Phillies couldn't use Blanton to try to acquire Halladay.
Recent reports have indicated that the Phillies are open to the possibility of trading Blanton. These seems odd as the Phillies' only needs are pitching (since they signed Placido Polanco to play third base and addressed their bench needs by signing Juan Castro, Brian Schneider and Ross Gload). The back end of the Phillies' starting rotation is already uncertain, so trading Blanton would create an unnecessary hole. It would seem odd for the Phillies to trade Blanton for another pitcher. Blanton is going to be due an arbitration raise on his $5.5 million salary this year, but certainly the Phillies can afford that raise. So with so no non-pitching needs and an affordable salary, why are the Phillies considering trading Joe Blanton?

Perhaps, the Phillies are looking to obtain prospects. The Phillies are in anything but a rebuilding mode right now but they could flip some of these prospects to Toronto in a trade to acquire Halladay while keeping their farm system in tact. Trading Blanton would also allow the Phillies to free payroll space to afford Halladay's $15 million salary in 2010.