The trade deadline has come and gone and left a TON of trades in it's wake. We've compiled a list of all the trades that occurred during the entire month of July in one giant trade recap. One interesting note, unless I've missed something, 27 of the 30 teams completed at least one trade last month. The Astros, Angels, and Rangers were the thre teams to stand pat in July.

• The Cubs traded for Jeff Baker from Colorado for Alberto Alburquerque.
• The Indians traded Joan Meloan from the Rays for Winson Abreu.
• The A's traded Ryan Webb, Greg Italiano, and a PTBNL (Sean Gallagher) for Scott Hairston from the Padres.
• The Orioles traded Ryan Freel to the Royals for a PTBNL.
• The White Sox acquired Tony Pena from Arizona in exchange for Brandon Allen.
• The Royals acquired Yuniesky Betancourt from Seattle for Danny Cortes and Derrick Saito.
• The Mets and Braves made a straight up trade of Ryan Church and Jeff Francoeur.
• Seattle acquired Jack Hannahan from the M's for Justin Souza.
• The Brewers traded for Felipe Lopez from the Diamondbacks for Cole Gillespie and Roque Mercedes.
• The Orioles and Padres made the second straight up trade of Oscar Salazar and Cla Meredith.
• With the third straight up trade, the Cards sent Chris Duncan to Boston for Julio Lugo. Lugo was recently DFA'd by the Red Sox.
• The Red Sox added another left-handed bat when they acquired Adam LaRoche from the Pirates for Hunter Strickland and Argenis Diaz.
• The Cardinals acquired slugger Matt Holliday for Brett Wallace, Shane Peterson, and Clayton Morentsen.
• The Giants trade Scott Barnes to the Indians in exchange for Ryan Garko.
• The Pirates and Mariners made a 7 player deal that sent Jack Wilson and Ian Snell for Jeff Clement, Ronny Cedeno, Nathan Adcock, Brett Lorin, and Aaron Pribanic.
• The Reds acquired Wladimir Balentien from Seattle in exchange for reliever Robert Manuel.
• The Yankees acquired Jason Hirsh from the Rockies for a minor leaguer and released Brett Tomko to make room.
• The Phillies traded for Cliff Lee and Ben Francisco for Carlos Carrasco, Jason Donald, Lou Marson, and Jason Knapp.
• The Giants acquired Freddy Sanchez from the Pirates in exchange for Tim Alderson.
• The Royals acquired Josh Anderson for cash considerations after he was DFA'ed by the Tigers.
• The Dodgers acquired George Sherrill from Baltimors for Josh Bell and Steve Johnson.
• The Cubs acquired both Tom Gorzelanny and John Grabow from the Pirates for Kevin Hart and Jose Ascanio.
• The Tigers acquired Jarrod Washburn for Luke French and Mauricio Robles.
• The Dodgers and Brewers swapped Vinny Rottino and Claudio Vargas.
• The Red Sox made the biggest trade by acquiring Victor Martinez in exchange for Justin Masterson, Nick Hagadone, and Bryan Price.
• The Blue Jays acquired Sean Smith from the Pirates for future considerations.
• The Yankees added Jerry Hairston Jr. from Cincinatti for minor leaguer Chase Weems.
• The Red Sox then went ahead and traded Adam Laroche to the Braves for Casey Kotchman straight up.
• The Marlins traded for Nick Johnson in exchange for Aaron Thompson.
• The Rockies added two pieces to their bullpen, a righty and lefty. Joe Beimel and Rafael Betancourt.
• The White Sox acquired Jake Peavy surprisingly and they traded Aaron Poreda, Clayton Richard, Dexter Carter, and Adam Russell for him.
• The Reds and Blue Jays exchanged third basemen, with Scott Rolen going to Cincinatti in exchange for Edwin Encarnacion, Josh Roenicke, and Zach Stewart.
• The Twins got Orlando Cabrera from the A's for Tyler Ladendorf.

Update 7-31 3:30 CST:

It looks like Halladay is indeed staying put. While the Angels were making a late push, nothing got done before the deadline passed.

Update 7-31-09:

While there has been no news on a Roy Halladay trade 15 minutes after the official deadline, there are still rumblings that we may still hear about a deal similar to the Manny Ramirez trade last season that wasn't announced until after the deadline had passed.

Joel Sherman points out that the Jays had said Scott Rolen wouldn't be traded unless Halladay was and Rolen was traded to the Reds. So, there may be a deal we've not heard about.

Throwing more fuel on this possible rumor fire, ESPN's Jayson Stark is reporting that the Angels have made a late push for Halladay with a deal centering on young pitcher Joe Saunders.

If there's a deal, we should certainly begin to hear about it soon and of course, we'll keep you updated.

Update 7-30-09:

FoxSports' Ken Rosenthall is reporting that while the Red Sox, Rangers, Rays, Dodgers, and Angels are all still interested in acquiring the Jay's ace, it is "very quiet" on the Halladay front.

With the Phillies out of the running and Blue Jays' GM J.P. Ricciardi sticking to his high asking price, it seems more and more likely Halladay will remain with Toronto for the rest of the year.

I don't see the Jays getting the same quality offers this off-season and certainly not at next years deadline. While I understand Ricciardi wants to get the most he can for his ace, the offers that have been floating around in the media seem more than fair.

Update IV 7-24-09

Man the Halladay info is flying fast and furious today. While the Sirius report was apparently false, Ed Price is now reporting that the Blue Jays are "considering [the] Phillies offer of RHP Drabek, 3B Donald, C Marson and OF Taylor."

More as we get it...

Update III 7-24-09:

Andrew Fitzpatrick of Sirius Radio dropped the following note to me about the previous MLB XM report saying "Please be advised:  SIRIUS XM Radio is NOT reporting that the Phillies are close to a Halladay trade."

This would seem to confirm the statements of Jonathan Mayo we reported below. Also of note, the same Twitter account which made the false MLB XM claim is now reporting Buster Olney is reporting that the deal is close. Given the fallacy of the previous report, the latest alleged report should be viewed skeptically.

Update II 7-24-09:

MLB.com's Jonathan Mayo is refuting the earlier report that the trade is close saying the deal is "no where near being done; Not saying it doesn't happen, but it's not close."

Mayo still expects Halladay to end up in Philadelphia saying "usually, where there's smoke there's fire" but doesn't think it will happen as soon as is currently being reported.

Bottom line: it sounds like Halladay's probably a Phillie but will give a fairwell performance tonight in Toronto.

Update 7-24-09:

MLB XM and MLBNetwork are reporting that the Philadelphia Phillies are "close" to trading for Toronto Blue Jays ace, Roy Halladay.

An announcement could apparently come within the next 24 hours but considering Halladay is scheduled to start tonight for the Jays I would expect the deal to be completed within the next couple of hours. If Halladay is scratched from the start or pulled early, it will be a clear indication that a trade has been agreed upon.

If the Phillies do indeed land Halladay, it could set up a showdown with the St. Louis' newly acquired slugger Matt Holliday with the Cardinals in town for a three game set against the Phils.

Update 7-22-09:

It's time to catch up on all the latest rumblings & grumblings about Roy Halladay. This has all the hallmarks of being one of those deals that's talked about for the whole month of July and then nothing happens. Thankfully though, the Jays have put a deadline on negotiations of July 29th when Halladay is schedule to make a start in Seattle.

ESPN Insider (subscription required) lists the Phillies, Rays, and Rangers as the front-runners to land the coveted pitcher. However, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch's Joe Strauss reports that the Cardinals are still in the mix, and could get a deal done without trading Colby Rasmus.

Yahoo Sports' Gordon Edes reports that the Phillies and other teams will likely turn their attention to other targets such as the Indians' Cliff Lee if the Jays don't come down off their sky high demands.

At the same time, the Toronto Sun's Bob Elliot quotes Jay's GM Ricciardi as saying "It's unlikely Halladay will be dealt."

Before Halladay hopefulls everywhere get too upset, ESPN's Jason Stark reported this morning that Ricciardi expects talks for Halladay to heat up next week.

With all that being said, we still don't know all that much more than we did a week ago. It sounds like the Red Sox, Yankees, Mets, and Cubs are out of the running for Halladay. However, GM's don't exactly like to negotiate trades in full view of the public & the media. Most of what we hear from Ricciardi and other sources from around the league could just as easily be posturing to manuever the price more to their liking.

Nevertheless, we'll keep you up-to-date on all the rumors as we hear them!

Update 7-16-09:

Lots of Halladay related news today. Ken Rosenthal started his most recent article with this tidbit:

"The Angels and Cardinals are among the teams interested in Roy Halladay, but rival executives are skeptical that either club can produce a strong enough package to land the Blue Jays' ace."

Rosenthal lists the Phillies and Yankees as the favorites to land Doc Halladay.

SI's Jon Heyman says the Blue Jays have "told AL East contenders they much prefer to trade Halladay out of the division" which would seem to knock the Yankees back out of it.

Cardinals reporter Joe Strauss reported today that the Cardinals recently contacted the Jays but are now "downplaying" the possibilities of a trade due to the Jay's high demands which apparently included Colby Rasmus. Rasmus would obviously be a deal breaker for the Cardinals and Strauss mentioned in a chat that he believes the Cardinals' best shot at landing Halladay may require a third team involved.

That's quite a few snippets of Halladay news today but as expected, it doesn't appear anything is in the works yet & the only teams I'd really count "out" of it are the Red Sox and Yankees. Even then if one of them (read as Yankees) got desperate enough, even they could make a late surge.

Update 7-13-09:

Speaking in St. Louis before his All-Star game start, Roy Halladay estimated his chances of being traded at 50/50. That's considerably better than the 20% chance Peter Gammons gave last week, but not quite as certain as Jon Heyman seemed yesterday.

Halladay once again cited his desire to play for a winner but failed to specify whether a contract extension would be required for him to waive his full no-trade clause.

While it's probably anyone's guess at this point where or even if Halladay gets traded, I'd be surprised if one contending team (most likely the Phillies) didn't make a big push to land the ace.

However, if Cleveland begins to seriously consider trading lefty Cliff Lee, Toronto may be forced to either come off their sky-high demands, or wait to trade Halladay in the offseason or even at next year's deadline.

Update 7-9-09:

Baseball Prospectus' Will Carroll just Tweeted that the Jays may try to "hang" Vernon Wells onto any Roy Halladay deal similarly to how Mike Lowell was included in the deal that netted the Red Sox Josh Beckett.

Of course, Wells is still owed over $100 million by my count and Halladay is making quite a bit more than Beckett was back then as well.

To be honest, I don't know that the Jays would find a team willing to take on Wells' contract if Toronto threw in Halladay for free.

Update II 7-8-09:

The New York Post's Joel Sherman says that the Phillies should be viewed as the favorite to land Halladay from the Jays. He quotes on GM as saying "No team in baseball is more motivated to get a starter than the Phillies."

Sherman also lists the Cardinals and Rangers as darkhorses in the bidding. As mentioned previously, the Cardinals have two top prospects the Jays are known to covet and as Sherman notes, have nearly $30 million coming off the books next year.

Despite that increased flexibility, Bernie Miklaz of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch makes a pretty convincing case on why he doesn't the Cardinals are a fit.

Last but not least, Sherman finally gives some ink to the Rangers who have been rumored to be limited by payroll issues but certainly have the players possible to grab Toronto's interest.

Update 7-8-09:

As expected, lots of talk around the league about Halladay. The NY Daily News doesn't expect Toronto to trade within the division and also doesn't think the Yankees would pay the price in players it would take to land the ace.

The Philadelphia Inquirer believes the Phillies will make a big push to land Doc Halladay, and they would seem to have the trade chips to do so. The only problem of course is that they're not the only team that will be vying for his services.

MLB.com's Dodger beat writer doesn't seem to like the chances that Halladay will be wearing Dodger blue any time soon.

Future Redbirds author Erik Manning points out that Jay's GM J.P. Ricciardi has long coveted Brett Wallace (who was drafted by the Blue Jays back in '05 before attending ASU). Manning speculates that Wallace and highly touted prospect Pete Kozma would be the likely starting point if St. Louis were to acquire Halladay.

While some onlookers faulted Ricciardi for not trading Halladay sooner, when more teams would be able to afford to take on his salary, the feeding frenzy that has ensued after the announcement makes it clear he's still going to get plenty of bang for his buck.

7-7-09

As the Toronto Blue Jays have fallen out of contention, the pressure to trade ace Roy Halladay has been mounting. Halladay's a free agent after the 2010 season and with so few impact players on the trade market this year, the Jays could make a killing by trading the hurler.

Blue Jays GM J.P. Ricciardi was quoted as saying "I'm not saying we're going to shop him. But if something makes sense, we at least have to listen. We're (leaning) more toward listening than we've ever been."

Halladay, 32, has a full no trade clause but has reportedly stated he'd wave it to play for a contender.

When a pitcher like "Doc" is moved AND is more than just a rental, the entire league gets interested. And, according to a tweet by Jordan Bastian, MLB.com's beat writer for the Jays, more than a dozen teams "have asked about Halladay [but] "Serious" interest [came from] NYY, NYM, STL, MIL, LAD, LAA, BOS"

While it's going to take a king's ransom for anyone to pry the former Cy Young winner away, I have a hard time believing the Jays would trade him within the division.

Sports Illustrated's Jon Heyman tweeted that the "Jays may want top SS prospect in package for Doc." Which, he points out would be "good for #phils (donald), #brewers (escobar), #chisox (beckham)."

We'll undoubtedly be hearing MUCH more about possible trades in the coming days and we'll keep this post updated with up to the minute news as we hear it. I get the feeling this year's trade deadline is going to be a wild one!

The Los Angeles Dodgers have traded pitcher Claudio Vargas back the Milwaukee Brewers in echange for catching prospect Vinny Rottino.

Vargas had been used as a reliever with the Dodgers after coming off a 3 month stay on the DL. Vargas won 11 games for the Brewers in 2007 but struggled before being released in 2008.

The Brewers are hoping to snap out of their recent slide which has seen them fall 4 games behind the first place Cubs and 3.5 back of the second place Cardinals.

Fresh off last night's blown save by Jonathan Broxton, the Los Angeles Dodgers have traded for Baltimore Orioles closer, George Sherrill.

MLB.com is reporting that the Dodgers gave up third baseman Josh Bell, pitcher Steve Johnson, and two prospects in exchange for Sherrill who has compiled 20 saves with a 2.40 ERA.

It's unclear whether Dodger manager, Joe Torre will opt to use Sherrill as a set-up man, or in the closer role he's been in with Baltimore for the past few years.

The Los Angeles Dodgers' star slugger Manny Ramirez has reportedly tested positive for performance enhancing drugs and will be suspended by Major League Baseball for 50 games.

Manny joins a crowded list of the game's biggest stars under the cloud of PEDs. While Barry Bonds and Mark McGwire have long been the faces of baseball's steroid problem, they've been supplanted in recent years by Roger Clemens, Alex Rodriguez, and now Manny Ramirez.

Once considered a sure thing for inclusion into the Hall of Fame, the suspension could delay or prevent Ramirez's entry all-together. Mark McGwire has received a cool reception from HOF voters in his first few years of eligibility due his connections with the steroid issue. If that trend continues, Manny's induction could very well be in trouble.

On a more practical level, the Dodgers are off to the best start in baseball at 21-8. Manny has played a huge role in that fast start, batting .348 with 6 home runs and 20 RBI anchoring the heart of the Dodger lineup. Xavier Paul is apparently being called up to take Manny's spot on the roster but the Dodgers are going to be hard pressed to replace his production in the lineup.

The Los Angeles Dodgers reportedly made slugger Manny Ramirez yet another contract offer, an offer the enigmatic start apparently could refuse.

The offer was said to be a one year deal worth $25 million with a player option for a second year at $20. Talks between Manny and the Dodgers had been heating up in recent days and GM Ned Colletti's absence from the club's spring training facility fueled speculation that a deal was close.

However, ESPN.com is reporting that Manny has once again turned down the Dodgers offer and that negotiations are starting "from scratch."

The Dodgers remain Manny's only real suitor and it would come as quite a surprise if he signed anywhere else. However, with Spring Training in full swing, Ramirez agent Scott Boras appears to be playing a high risk game of chicken with the Dodgers, daring the team to start the season without the powerful slugger in their lineup.

The Los Angeles Dodgers are now "actively involved in negotiations" with free agent second baseman, Orlando Hudson, according to the LA Daily News.

The former Gold Glove winner has had limited suitors this offseason despite his career year last season, due in large part to his status as a type A free agent who was offered arbitration. For a team other than the Arizona Diamondbacks to sign Hudson, they'd have to give up their first round pick as compensation and so far no team has been unwilling to pay that price.

There has been some speculation that MLB might tweak the rules governing the trade of free agents, thus allowing sign-and-trade deals, however, it has not been mentioned as a possibility with Hudson.

The Dodgers would also need to find room on their 40 man roster should they decide to sign Hudson. The only spot left was widely believed to be reserved for Manny Ramirez.

The slow market for type A free agents such as Orlando Hudson, Orlando Cabrera, and Juan Cruz might lead Major League Baseball to alter the rules surrounding the trade of free agents, effectively opening the door for sign-and-trade agreements.

Currently, free agents are not allowed to be traded until June 15th, however FoxSports' Ken Rosenthal is reporting that the players union would be open to allowing players, specifically Cruz, to waive that right. Since signing a type A free agent requires a team to give up their first round draft pick as compensation, the market for Cruz and others has been incredibly slow. The Twins, Dodgers, and Brewers have all been rumored to be interested in Cruz, but have made it clear they don't want to give up a first round pick in order to sign him.

Assuming the players union and MLB actually do change the rules, Cruz's agent would then negotiate with any interested teams. Once the terms of a deal were agreed upon, the Diamondbacks would negotiate with the interested team to determine what compensation (presumably a player worth slightly less than a first round pick) the D'backs would receive. Cruz would then re-sign with Arizona (thus negating any type A triggered loss of draft picks) and be imediately traded to a new team.

MLB.com is reporting that a sign-and-trade deal is being discussed in regards to Cruz, however, there's no word on whether other type A free agents will seek a similar agreement.

"I definitely would be very surprised if he's not a Dodger"

Los Angeles Dodgers manager Joe Torre made headlines yesterday proclaiming he'd be surprised if Manny Ramirez did not resign with the Dodgers. While he quickly assured reporters that he had no inside knowledge of negotiations, it reignited Manny fever in the LA sports world.

For his part, GM Ned Colletti stated that "there's been some progress made [in talks with Ramirez] but obviously not enough to consummate a deal." While their previous offers to Manny and his agent Scott Boras have been regected it certainly appears that there's no hard feelings from the Dodgers.

And in reality, Boras is lucky that he hasn't alienated the one team in the league that can afford to give Manny a deal big enough for the "super agent" to save face. The market for light-fielding heavy hitters, even future Hall of Fame hitters, was surprisingly low this offseason and I would be shocked if Manny winds up with a deal better than the two year, $45 million deal from the Dodgers turned down at the beginning of winter. While the San Francisco Giants have been rumored to be interested, they've shown no indication of being able to afford to match even the one year, $25 million deal from the Dodgers that Manny turned down more recently.

That being said, the Dodgers are undoubtedly a better team with Ramirez anchoring their lineup and like Joe Torre, I'd be surprised if Man-Ram isn't back in Dodger blue by opening day.

The Los Angeles Dodgers are reportedly the close to signing free agent pitcher Randy Wolf.

The longtime Phillie spent the 2007 season with the Dodgers winning 9 games with a 4.73 ERA, making just 18 starts due to injury. Last year the lefty split time between the Padres and the Houston Astros and putting up a 3.57 ERA with the 'Stros.

Wolf has also been linked to the New York Mets, Arizona Diamondbacks, Philadelphia Phillies, and the Houston Astros over the course of the offseason but is apparently leaning towards a one or two year deal with the Dodgers who are looking to replace both Brad Penny and Derek Lowe. The deal is rumored to be for significantly less than the three year, $28.5 million deal the Astros offered earlier this winter.

If Wolf does indeed sign with LA, the deal could pressure the Mets to intensify their persuit of free agent Oliver Perez.