Toronto ace Roy Halladay is headed to the disabled list.

The Blue Jays plan to put Halladay and closer Scott Downs on the DL today, further depleting their injury-riddled pitching staff.

Right-hander Casey Janssen was placed on the 15-day DL before last night's game against the Philadelphia Phillies. Left-hander Brad Mills was called up from Triple-A Las Vegas to take Janssen's spot, and he is slated to make his major league debut today at Philadelphia.

Mills was 1-8 with a 4.48 ERA in 13 starts at Las Vegas of the Pacific Coast League.

Halladay strained his right groin last Friday. The 2003 AL Cy Young Award winner, Halladay is 10-1 with a 2.53 ERA this season.

Downs strained his big left toe during Tuesday's 8-3 victory over Philadelphia. He was injured while swinging at a pitch. Downs has eight saves to go with a 1-0 record and 1.98 ERA.

Janssen has inflammation in his surgically repaired shoulder. He missed last season following surgery in spring training and is 2-3 with a 6.23 ERA after returning May 23 at Atlanta.

The rash of injuries leaves the Blue Jays without their top five starters. Dustin McGowan, Shaun Marcum and Jesse Litsch also are on the DL.

SHORT HOPS

All-Star coaching staffs: St. Louis Cardinals manager Tony La Russa and Los Angeles Dodgers manager Joe Torre were selected by Philadelphia's Charlie Manuel, the NL manager, for the July 14 All-Star game in St. Louis.

AL manager Joe Maddon of Tampa Bay picked Kansas City's Trey Hillman and Seattle's Don Wakamatsu as his coaches, the commissioner's office said yesterday.

Martinez looking to return: Right-hander Pedro Martinez said yesterday that he has had talks with the Chicago Cubs and Tampa Bay Rays and hopes to sign a contract in the near future.

Martinez, 37, has a 214-99 record with an ERA of 2.91 in 17 seasons with the Los Angeles Dodgers, Montreal Expos, Boston Red Sox and New York Mets.

Vizquel ties Aparicio: Texas Rangers shortstop Omar Vizquel has matched Hall of Famer Luis Aparicio for the most hits by a player from Venezuela. In his 21st major league season, Vizquel, 41, got his 2,677th career hit with a single in the fifth inning last night against the Houston Astros.

Mariners' Bedard on DL: The Seattle Mariners placed left-hander Erik Bedard on the 15-day disabled list with shoulder inflammation. Bedard, 5-2 with a 2.47 ERA in 11 starts, has not pitched since June 7.