More photos » by Matt Rourke - AP

1 day ago: New Philadelphia Phillies baseball pitcher Roy Halladay, right, poses for photographs with Phillies general manager Ruben Amaro Jr. during a baseball news conference in Philadelphia, Wednesday, Dec. 16, 2009. Halladay was traded to the Phillies on Wednesday in part of a four-team trade that sent Cliff Lee to the Seattle Mariners. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke)

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The deal is done, the press conference complete, and superstar right-handed pitcher Roy Halladay is officially a member of the Philadelphia Phillies.

The price, as has been discussed and will likely be debated for generations, was substantial -- Kyle Drabek, Michael Taylor, and Travis D'Arnaud plus, let's be honest here, the prerequisite dumping of Cliff Lee -- but Ruben Amaro, Jr. got his man.

Excised from all the baggage associated with the seemingly endless courtship and acquisition, the Phillies did manage to get one of the best, most durable pitchers in baseball, with a pronounced ability to induce groundballs, who wants to be in Philadelphia and, perhaps most importantly, the willingness to negotiate a below-market contract extension.  Think they could have gotten Halladay for 3 years/$60MM with the Yankees and Red Sox in a bidding war?

So, congratulations Phillies and Roy Halladay.  I sincerely hope that any lingering bitterness about some of the more peculiar aspects of this particular series of transactions don't translate into disdain from the fanbase for Mr. Halladay himself.  He's one of the best.

The Phillies look to be awfully close to finally landing Blue Jays right-hander Roy Halladay.  But the cost appears to be steep.

Nothing is final yet, but the Phillies will apparently be sending postseason hero Cliff Lee plus possibly prospects to the Seattle Mariners, for additional prospects to be flipped to Toronto.  All very confusing, tons of moving parts, so I’m reluctant to post that this is a done deal.

Details notwithstanding, it appears that Roy Halladay will be a Phillie in 2010, and probably beyond… and Cliff Lee won’t be.

The good and bad of this trade will rest in how much money changes hands, and which prospects go where.  The devil is absolutely in the details.  Check back for analysis as this story progresses.

[9:15 PM UPDATE from Jayson Stark on ESPNews]:

His understanding of the deal:

Phillies send Lee, Kyle Drabek, Michael Taylor and Travis D'Arnaud; get Roy Halladay and Phillippe Aumont.  Yuck.

[5:45 UPDATE from Jayson Stark, who says the deal is close, but not final]:

As part of the deal, Halladay would agree to a three-year extension through 2013, with a vesting option that could lengthen the deal by another year or two, one source said. The extension is expected to guarantee Halladay in the neighborhood of $60 million, plus the $15.75 million he would make in 2010, the final year of his current contract.

According to a source who spoke with two teams involved in the trade, Toronto would get highly regarded Mariners pitching prospect Phillippe Aumont, Phillies catching prospect Travis d'Arnaud and another Phillies prospect in exchange for Halladay. Indications are that the Phillies have balked at Toronto's repeated requests for outfielder Domonic Brown, and the Phillies are offering highly touted outfielder Michael Taylor instead.

Seattle would also send two prospects to Philadelphia in exchange for Lee, who is a year away from free agency.

As of late Monday afternoon, the extension had not been agreed upon. And the Blue Jays and Phillies were still haggling over the final prospect. In addition, Phillies doctors would have to sign off on Halladay's physical.