ESPN.com senior baseball writer Buster Olney reported Sunday that the Phillies have “kicked around” the idea of approaching the Cardinals about a trade involving Ryan Howard and Albert Pujols.

Olney reports that it would be a blockbuster one-for-one deal.

“Lies,” GM Ruben Amaro Jr. told Olney. “That’s a lie. I don’t know who you’re talking to, but that’s a lie.”

Olney goes on to write about the logic surrounding a potenial trade:

For starters, Pujols would give the Phillies a lethal right-handed power bat in a lefty-heavy lineup.

Pujols and Howard are scheduled to be free agents after the 2011 season. The Cardinals haven’t made progress with Pujols as far as a contract extension in concerned. The Cardinals, according to Olney, could seek trade suitors for Pujols , a la Toronto and Roy Halladay, knowing they will have no chance to re-sign the reigning MVP.

The Phillies must consider the possibility of life without Howard, too. However, dealing for Pujols wouldn’t solve that problem because, in all likelihood, they wouldn’t be able to lock Pujols to a long-term contract extension, either.

Pujols is likely to command for money than Howard in the open market.

Howard is a St. Louis native and is considered a local hero.

Will this ever happen? Probably not. Fun to speculate? Definitely.

In a better-late-than-never Phillies-related news item, left-handed specialist Scott Eyre has retired after 13 seasons in the major leagues.

Eyre, 37, posted a career 28-30 record with a 4.23 ERA in 617 games with the Chicago White Sox, Toronto Blue Jays, San Francisco Giants, Chicago Cubs and

Scott Eyre owned a 3-0 record with a 1.88 ERA after joining the Phillies in 2008

Phillies.

The Phillies had offered Eyre a minor league contract. Eyre turned down the offer, but said he was set on retiring, anyway.

“I had most of this retirement thing planned out,” Eyre said to Phillies.com. “I think even if he would have offered me a better contract I still don’t think I would have taken it. My family took a trip to Disney before Christmas. We stayed in the RV. We didn’t even go to the amusement parks. We fished. We hung out. It was fun. The more time I spent with the kids at home the more I realized I wanted to hang out. I’ve played long enough.

“I go out playing in back-to-back World Series. I won one of them. I lost two of them. I’ve been to three, so it’s not like I didn’t accomplish anything in my career. I pitched in a whole bunch of games and had a lot of fun doing it.

“I’ll be 38 in May. I’ve pitched in a lot of games. I’ve had elbow issues. I had the surgery to get it fixed, but nobody really knows if it’s going to work or not. I can’t guarantee it’s going to feel great when I’m snapping off sliders. So I really do understand why he (GM Ruben Amaro Jr.) held back (on offering Eyre a major league contract). He’s trying to protect the organization in case I get hurt. It made the decision a little easier, but I don’t think it would have swayed it.”

Eyre will miss his teammates and the city of Philadelphia.

“Every day I think about what I’m going to miss,” he said. “I’m going to miss going to the clubhouse. Being with the Phillies, I’m going to miss seeing Chad Durbin sitting at his locker doing the crossword puzzle. I’m going to miss watching Brad [Lidge] read his biblical books in his locker after batting practice, eating the biggest sandwich I’ve ever seen anybody eat. I’ve talked to guys about it. I talked to [Jon] Lieber about it. Basically, you miss the camaraderie with the guys. And the Phillies’ clubhouse is great. That’s one of the reasons why Cliff [Lee] didn’t want to leave. It’s one of the best clubhouses you could be in. I don’t care what anybody says about theirs. I’ve been in a few of them. This is one of the best. I never once said, ‘I don’t want to go to the field today.’”

Scott Eyre will be missed. He was a great clubhouse guy, a consumate professional and a clutch performer since he was acquired from the Cubs via trade in 2008. I think it’s going to be tough finding another lefty as effective as he was. J.C. Romero will be counted on to bounce back and the Phillies will either scour the free agent market for another lefty or let a youngster like Antonio Bastardo prove his worth.

Cliff Lee was disappointed to learn he was traded Wednesday.

“At first I didn’t believe it,” Lee said, according to Phillies.com and several other reports. “I thought we were working out an extension with the Phillies. I thought I would spend the rest of my career there.”

Phillies general manager Ruben Amaro Jr. said the Phillies approached Lee about an extension, but couldn’t come to an agreement.

“We made what we thought was a pretty substantial offer. We had some preliminary discussions, but other than that … it was amicable. Like I said before, I just didn’t feel comfortable that we were going to be able to get to the finish line. And so we ended up moving toward the Halladay situation.”

It seems that Lee was willing to re-sign with the Phillies, but wanted at least four years in addition to 2010, which is the last year on his current deal. The Phillies have a long history of not signing pitchers to more than three years. Roy Halladay received a three-year deal on top of the one year remaining on his contract with Toronto.

“As I have always said, I get very uncomfortable with length [of contracts] on pitchers,” Amaro said. “Frankly, I wouldn’t want to go any more than four years. Three years has been kind of our standard on pitching, and I’d like to stay with that standard. That said, when you’re talking about a guy like Halladay who has the kind of track record that he has, sometimes special circumstances lead themselves to a different way of thinking. And that’s why we were comfortable guaranteeing four, including this year.”

Lee added that when Amaro told him the news about the trade, he thought that Amaro’s phone call was to further discuss the contract situation.

Multiple reports, including FOXSportsnet, have the Phillies as the No. 1 bidder to acquire Roy Halladay.

However, Phillies GM Ruben Amaro Jr. is essentially denying those reports.

“I don’t think there’s any likeliness,” Amaro said, regarding the possibility of the Phillies being linked to Halladay. “There’s nothing likely …”

Is Amaro dicking everyone around? Verypossible. But, I think the Blue Jays are going to want J.A. Happ and a pair of top-level prospects, notably outfielder Domonic Brown and pitcher Kyle Drabek, OR Brown and outfielder Michael Taylor.

And I don’t think Amaro would pull the trigger if TWO of those young studs are required …

WITH THAT BEING SAID …

If a deal does happen, and the Phillies part way with those aforementioned prospects and Happ, it’s likely the team will shed salary. Joe Blanton, who will probably make around $7 million next year, would be probably be traded if Halladay comes to town.

So,  the Phillies’ rotation in 2010 would be Halladay, Cliff Lee, Cole Hamels, Jamie Moyer, Kyle Kendrick/Drabek…

Unfortunately, the Phillies are interested in John Smoltz and Jason Marquis to fill out the rotation …

• It appears the Phillies will not re-sign relief pitchers Chan Ho Park and Scott Eyre before the end of the winter meetings Thursday. Park remains the team’s No. 1 priority in terms of the bullpen, but according to multiple local reports, the Phillies seem willing to move on without Eyre because they believe Antonio Bastardo and Sergio Escalona have the potential to be effective left-handers out of the pen.
• Brandon Lyon’s asking price is too high, according to multiple reports. The Phillies were aggressively pursuing Lyon to be, perhaps, the closer if Brad Lidge falters next year.
• The Phillies have the pieces to obtain Roy Halladay in a trade. According to reports, the Phillies have had dialogue with the Blue Jays during the winter meetings.
• The Phillies have until Saturday to offer salary arbitration to right-handers Chad Durbin and Clay Condrey. Durbin, in all likelihood, will return.
• The addition of Ross Gload, signed late Tuesday, probably marks the “official” end of Matt Stairs’ tenure. Eric Bruntlett declined a minor-league contract last month and Juan Castro was signed to take his place.
• GM Ruben Amaro Jr. told Phillies.com that Kyle Kendrick will “fight” for a spot in the starting rotation come spring training. Oft-injured, hard-throwing right-hander Scott Mathieson will compete for one of the bullpen spots.

Placido Polanco, who played  in Philadelphia from 2002-05, signed a three-year,$18 million contract with the Phillies Wednesday to play third base.

Polanco won a pair of Gold Gloves at second base in Detroit and is a career .303 hitter. He will replace Pedro Feliz at the hot corner, a position change Polanco embraced.

“We’re very happy to have Placido back in a Phillies uniform,” said GM Ruben Amaro Jr. “He’s a professional hitter who will enhance our lineup. As a Gold Glove infielder, we’re very confident that he will make a smooth transition back to third base. Polly also gives us some added versatility at second base if and when Chase needs a rest.”

Polanco’s first stint in Philadelphia began in July 2002 when he was acquired from St. Louis for Scott Rolen. Polanco finished the season at third base, replacing Rolen, but was the Phillies’ starting second baseman from 2003 to the beginning of 2005. A few months into the season, Polanco was traded to Detroit to make room for Chase Utley at second.

Polanco said during his press conference that he “never wanted to leave” Philadelphia.

Last season, Polanco batted .285 with 10 home runs and 72 RBIs for the Tigers.

All in all, this is a great signing by the Phillies. Talks between Phillies management and Polanco’s representatives intensified over the last 48 hours or so. Thus, it’s sort of a surprising move, considering the Phillies had major interest in mark DeRosa.

Polanco, though, is the best option. Yes, he’s a minor downgrade from Feliz defensively, but Polanco is arguably one of the best contact hitters in baseball. Plus, the guy hardly ever strikes out. It’ll will be interesting to see where he hits, but the common thought is Polanco will hit No. 2 between Jimmy Rollins and Chase Utley. I like him there instead of Shane Victorino because Polanco is the prototypical No. 2 hitter. Victorino’s speed will come in handy in the No. 7 hole… so, I’m all for it.

The Phillies did not offer salary arbitration to relievers Chan Ho Park and Scott Eyre.

What this mean is that, if either or both sign with another team, the Phillies would not receive compensatory draft picks in return.

“I don’t know that we want to put ourselves in a position to be tied up money-wise in either player,” Phillies GM Ruben Amaro Jr. told Phillies.com . “I think we want to be able to keep our flexibility as far as who we’ll make a run at. And that will financially tie us up, frankly. That doesn’t mean we don’t want to bring them back. We can still bring them back.”

While both were key bullpen pieces last season, it’s very possible that neither re-signs with the club. It’s no secret that Park would rather be a starting pitcher — a foolish thought, if you ask me — and the Phillies would want him back as a five-out specialist in late relief.

Eyre’s been plagued with injuries and is leaning toward retirement. However, he wants to stay in Philadelphia because of the great clubhouse chemistry and passionate fans…

I expect Eyre back on a one-year deal and Park to move on to a team that will give him a shot to pitch in the starting rotation.

The Phillies are looking to upgrade the hot corner.

It was announced Sunday night that the Phillies declined to pick up Pedro Feliz’s option for the 2010 season.

The Phillies are believed to be pursuing free agents Chone Figgins, Adrian Beltre and Mark DeRosa.

“This doesn’t preclude us from bringing Pedro back next season,” Phillies general manager Ruben Amaro Jr. said in a statement. “While this allows us to explore other opportunities, we will continue to keep the lines of communication open with Pedro and his representative.”

Despite a .266 batting average, Feliz led the team with a .336 average with runners in scoring position in 2009.

The 34-year-old was scheduled to earn $5.5 million next season.

Feliz’s single drove in the World Series-winning run against Tampa Bay in 2008.

Ruben Amaro Jr.

Brett Myers will not return to the Phillies.

GM Ruben Amaro Jr. said on CSN Philly that it’s in the best interest of the team to “cut ties” with Myers.

“I’m not as disappointed as I thought I’d be,” Myers said in a statement.

Myers added that he wants the “roughest treatment” from  fans if he pitches again in Philadelphia as an opposing player.

Myers was the Phillies’ first-round draft pick in 1999. He was the second-longest tenured Phillie (July 2002) behind only Jimmy Rollins (September 2000).

—

Amaro said the team is exploring options at third base and therefore may not pick up Pedro Feliz’s club option.

It sounded as if Amaro wants to part ways with Feliz. Amaro didn’t at all indicate that he  wants Feliz back.

The Phillies are rumored to be interested in Mark DeRosa.

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Amaro added that he has talked to the agent of Chan Ho Park. He said they are optimistic about re-signing Scott Eyre, who has contemplated retirement but wants to play in Philadelphia.

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Finally… the Phillies put right-hander Scott Mathieson on the 40-man roster. Mathieson is coming off a pair of Tommy John surgeries.

Mathieson could be a viable option at closer. I’m getting the sense the Phillies would like to mold him into that role to perhaps succeed Brad Lidge at some point. He’s a flame thrower and has tons of potential… but he hasn’t stayed healthy.

Brett Myers could return for the World Series, according to an ESPN.com report.

Myers was left off the NLCS roster. The 2009 Opening Day starter was sidelined from May to September after undergoing hip surgery.

Brett Myers, left, in happier times.

Myers didn’t make the NLCS roster in large part because he hadn’t looked particularly good throwing the ball. That, apparently, has changed.

“His stuff is sharper,” GM Ruben Amaro Jr. said. “His breaking ball’s better. He was pretty crisp with his location. He’s throwing better. And that’s a great sign.”

Adding Myers would likely result in the Phillies carrying 12 pitchers in the World Series. They had 11 pitchers for the NLCS.

Eric Bruntlett or Miguel Cairo would likely be the odd man out for the World Series, if Myers is activated.

Tyler Walker, Kyle Kendrick and Clay Condrey have been throwing simulated games. It’s very unlikely either of those three relievers will be on the World Series roster, unless there is an injury.

ESPN.com also reported that Charlie Manuel will likely make Cole Hamels the Game 2 starter, behind Cliff Lee. Pedro Martinez or J.A. Happ would start Game 3.

It’s possible that Manuel goes with only three starting pitchers. That would allow Lee to start Games 1, 4 and 7.

I love that idea. Why is everyone so hellbent on picking four starting pitchers??? I don’t need to see Joe Blanton or even Happ for that matter make a start in the World Series.  I want Cliff Lee out there as many times as possible…