PHILADELPHIA -- Roy Halladay is moving closer toward a return to Philadelphia. If all goes well, Halladay could pitch again for the Phillies this season, and possibly beyond. Halladay, the two-time Cy Young Award winner, is set to take the next step in his return from shoulder surgery and will pitch a simulated game Saturday in Clearwater, Fla. Halladay threw 30 pitches in a bullpen session before Wednesdays game against the Chicago Cubs. Halladay said he was encouraged that his rehabilitation has gone well and hoped to pitch again this season. He had surgery on his right shoulder in May to repair a partially torn rotator cuff and remove a bone spur. He also has some fraying of the labrum. Because of the injury, Halladay pitched nothing like an ace and is 2-4 with an 8.65 ERA in seven starts this season. "Im not interested in coming back and pitching at the same level I was earlier this year," he said. "I want to come back and pitch at a high level." Halladay earned $20 million this season and is set to become a free agent. The Phillies entered Wednesday 10 games under .500 and are one of the biggest disappointments in baseball. Halladay, who threw a no-hitter in the 2010 playoffs, said hed like to return to the Phillies in 2014. "Quite obviously, its my first choice if everything goes the way I feel its going to go," he said. The 35-year-old right-hander said hes had no setback and was encouraged by his progress. There is no timetable for his return. "I want to make sure that when I start my rehab assignment, Im able to compete at a high level," he said. "I dont want to necessarily treat it as a spring training type of thing. I feel like Im getting close to that now, where I can compete that way. I want to go out and pitch in those games and compete the same way I would here, so I know where I stand." The Phillies won five straight division titles from 2007-2011, including the 2008 World Series. Halladay went 21-10 and threw a perfect game against the Marlins in his 2010, his first season in Philadelphia. Hes 201-104 with a 3.37 ERA in 15 seasons with Toronto and Philadelphia. He wants to finish strong and prove he can come close to regaining his ace form. "Im not worried about next year. I want to come back and pitch," he said. "I just want to come back and pitch and be a part of things, be effective."Chicago White Sox Shirts .875,000, avoiding arbitration. Clippards deal Monday means all eight Nationals players who filed for arbitration wound up settling before a hearing. Chicago White Sox Store . Irving scored 23 points, Tristan Thompson had 20 points and 10 rebounds and the Cavaliers beat the Denver Nuggets 117-109 on Friday night. https://www.cheapwhitesox.com/ .com) - Yankee Stadium is the home of the Bronx Bombers, but on Sunday afternoon it will open its gates to host the latest addition of the Hudson River Rivalry. Cheap White Sox Jerseys . Nigeria beat surprise package Ethiopia 2-0 in the second leg of their playoff for a comfortable 4-1 aggregate victory. Victor Moses converted a 20th-minute penalty after an Ethiopian handball, and Victor Obinna made certain of Nigerias place in Brazil with his powerful free kick in the 82nd at UJ Esuene Stadium. Custom Chicago White Sox Jerseys . -- Patrick Reed got an early start in golf.Wake Forest has concluded that team radio announcer Tommy Elrod -- a former player and assistant coach -- provided or attempted to provide confidential game preparations to opponents several times starting in 2014, the school said in a statement on Tuesday.The school began a programwide investigation last month after an equipment manager discovered documents inside Papa Johns Cardinal Stadium -- one day before Wake Forests Nov. 12 game in Louisville -- that showed specific Demon Deacons plays.Elrod has been fired from the IMG Radio Network and banned from Wake Forest athletics and its facilities.Elrod played for Wake Forest from 1993 to 1997 and was later hired as a graduate assistant under Jim Grobe. Elrod held multiple positions for 11 seasons but was not retained by current head coach Dave Clawson.Elrod joined IMG in 2014 as a football analyst after Clawson took over.Its incomprehensible that a former Wake Forest student-athlete, graduate-assistant, full-time football coach and current radio analyst for the school would betray his alma mater, Clawson said Tuesday in a statement.Athletic director Ron Wellman said he has known Elrod since his days as a player on Wakes football team.Im deeply disappointed that he would act against Wake Forest, our football team and our fans in such a harmful manner, Wellman said in a statement, by compromising confidential game-preparation information.Messages from ESPN.com to Elrod were not immediately returned.After the Wake Forest play sheet was brought to Clawsons attention, the coach turned the documents over to Wellman and the investigation began. Wake Forest alerted Louisville and the ACC that it was investigating a potential internal breach of confidentiality.In announcing the results of the investigation on Tuesday, the school cited emails, text messages and phone records in concluding that Elrod had tried to give out the confidenttial information.dddddddddddd?Wake Forest said it has taken steps to enhance security of game-preparation activities moving forward.I am extremely disappointed that our confidential and proprietary game preparation was compromised, Clawson said.We allowed [Elrod] to have full access to our players, team functions, film room and practices. He violated our trust, which negatively impacted our entire program. I am glad we have taken steps to ensure it will not happen in the future.Reached Tuesday by ESPN, Grobe had no comment. A Louisville spokesperson wouldnt comment other than to say: Coach [Bobby] Petrino doesnt have a comment in what appears to be a Wake Forest issue.Former Wake Forest quarterback Riley Skinner said the Tommy Elrod he knows is a stand-up character guy and one of the biggest reasons he went to Wake Forest. Skinner said he has talked to Elrod about once a month since leaving Wake Forest and that he put a Christmas card in the mail for Elrod two days ago.Im honestly shocked and blown away from what Ive been reading, Skinner said. Im praying that something has been blown out of proportion or theres some miscommunication, and I want to support him until I hear something from him. ... ?Alphonso Smith just called me, and all of my teammates -- everybody is just stunned and shocked, because the Tommy Elrod we know, he loved Wake Forest, he loved coaching. Its his alma mater. I just cant see him doing this. Strange doesnt even begin to describe the situation.Im still praying there is some gap in this story. Im hoping for the best for him and his family, because hes got three amazing kids and a great wife. ... Ive reached out to him, but hes probably turning every bit of communication off.ESPNs Heather Dinich contributed to this report.? ' ' '