by The Canadian Press , Waterloo Region Record

The Baseball world remained abuzz yesterday with talk about the 2003 Cy Young Award winner, set off with general manager J.P. Ricciardi's simple proclamation that he'll listen to offers for arguably the game's best pitcher.

The ensuing fervour will only build between now and the July 31 non-waiver trade deadline, as various teams weigh how steep a price they're willing to pay for Halladay, and Ricciardi ponders what return is enough to justify a franchise-altering deal.

"He's the best pitcher in the American League, probably the best pitcher in the majors,'' Phillies slugger Matt Stairs, a former Blue Jay from Fredericton, told the Philadelphia Inquirer. "He'd give us another horse. We'd be a lot more dangerous. He'd give us two No. 1 guys with (Cole) Hamels. . . .

"It's going to cost an awful lot to get him. I would do it. But that's coming from me because I played with him and I know what he's all about.''

Angels centrefielder Torii Hunter echoed those sentiments to the Los Angeles Times.

"If they're shopping Roy Halladay, everybody and their momma is going to be after him,'' he told the paper. "He's the guy I'd build a rotation around.

"He's smart. He hits his spots. He goes deep into games. He's a bulldog. When the pressure is on, he's at his best. He's everything you'd want in a starting pitcher.''

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