Baseball's hot stove started sizzling Monday, with Roy Halladay, John Lackey, Hideki Matsui and Mike Cameron all set to switch teams. And Cliff Lee is apparently on the move again, too.Philadelphia has an agreement to acquire Halladay in a trade with Toronto, with the former Cy Young Award winner reportedly negotiating a contract extension before the deal is official. It might turn into a three-way trade, as well. The Phillies were dangling Cliff Lee, another former Cy Young winner, to Seattle.
Boston made two key moves in one day, reaching tentative agreements on a five-year contract with pitcher John Lackey — worth $80-85 million — and a two-year deal with outfielder Mike Cameron for about $15 million. Lackey is the No. 1 free-agent pitcher on the market.
World Series MVP Hideki Matsui decided to head west, reaching agreement with the Los Angeles Angels on a one-year contract worth about $6.5 million.
Halladay has been coveted by the super powers for months. He is a six-time All-Star and the 2003 AL Cy Young Award winner. The 32-year-old right-hander went 17-10 with a 2.79 ERA for the Blue Jays last season. He led the majors with four shutouts and nine complete games while throwing 239 innings, second to Detroit's Justin Verlander (240).
Philadelphia was expected to give up pitchers J.A. Happ, Joe Blanton and prospect outfielder Dominic Brown, sources said. Happ and Blanton could capably fill two holes in the Toronto rotation.
It's not clear who the Mariners would give up to acquire Lee, but one of the players figures to be either Brandon Morrow or David Aardsma, two young pitchers with great arms. Lee, who was brilliant for the Phillies, will be a free agent after next season.
Lackey, 31, who has spent the last eight seasons with the Angels, would give the Red Sox one of the best rotations in baseball, rivaling that of the New York Yankees, who added CC Sabathia and A.J. Burnett before last season and then won the World Series. Sabathia signed for $161 million over seven years, while Burnett got an $82.5 million, five-year deal.
Lackey would join a rotation headlined by Josh Beckett and Jon Lester. Boston also has starters Daisuke Matsuzaka, Clay Buchholz and Tim Wakefield.
Lackey has a 102-71 regular-season record with a 3.81 ERA in eight seasons, all with the Angels. At Fenway Park, the right-hander is 2-5 with a 5.75 ERA in nine starts.
Cameron, 36, batted .250 with 24 homers and 70 RBIs last season for Milwaukee. A three-time Gold Glove winner in center field, he could switch to left in Boston as a replacement for free agent Jason Bay. The Red Sox have speedy Jacoby Ellsbury in center.
Matsui, 35, surpassed 100 RBIs four times in seven seasons with the Yankees after arriving from Japan. He hit .274 with 28 homers and 90 RBIs for the Yankees last season, then was selected World Series MVP.
Elsewhere ...
Jason Michaels is staying in Houston. The backup outfielder agreed to an $800,000, one-year contract. He has a .269 career average and is known more for his defense. The Astros also signed left-handed pitcher Gustavo Chacin to a one-year deal. Chacin was 25-15 with a 4.18 ERA in four seasons for Toronto.
The Yankees and Red Sox will meet in the major league Sunday night opener on April 4 on ESPN2
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