Roy Halladay

Harry Leroy Halladay III (May 14, 1977 – November 7, 2017) was an American professional baseball pitcher who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Toronto Blue Jays and Philadelphia Phillies between 1998 and 2013. His nickname, "Doc", coined by Toronto Blue Jays announcer Tom Cheek, was a reference to Wild West gunslinger Doc Holliday. His lasting durability allowed him to lead the league in complete games seven times, the most of any pitcher whose career began after 1945. He also led the league in strikeout-to-walk ratio five times and innings pitched four times. An eight-time All-Star, Halladay was one of the most dominant pitchers of his era and is regarded as one of the greatest pitchers of all time.

Raised in Arvada, Colorado, Halladay pitched at Arvada West High School before being drafted 17th overall by the Blue Jays in the 1995 MLB draft. He made his major league debut in 1998, nearly pitching a no-hitter in his second career start. After struggling in 2000, he was demoted to the low minor leagues, where he reworked his delivery and pitching. In 2002, Halladay established himself as a durable, elite starting pitcher, earning his first All-Star selection. The following year, he won the American League (AL) Cy Young Award and led the AL in complete games, which he accomplished five times in seven seasons, through 2009. Traded to the Phillies before the 2010 season, he pitched both the 20th perfect game and the second postseason no-hitter in major league history, led the majors in shutouts for the second consecutive year, and won the National League (NL) Cy Young Award. In 2011, Halladay had another dominant season, leading the NL in complete games, but he was plagued by injuries the next two years. After the 2013 season, he announced his retirement.

On November 7, 2017, Halladay died when he crashed his ICON A5 amphibious plane into the Gulf of Mexico off the coast of Florida. He was 40 years old. The following year the Blue Jays organization retired his number 32; the Phillies retired his number 34 in 2021. In 2019, Halladay was posthumously inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in his first year of eligibility.

Early life

Born in Denver, Colorado, Halladay grew up in the suburb of Arvada; his father, Harry Leroy Halladay II, was a pilot for a food-processing company, who began teaching his son to fly during the younger Halladay's early childhood; his mother, Linda, was a homemaker. Halladay was raised a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, though he did not practice later in life.

From an early age, Halladay loved baseball, trying every position on the field until, by age 14, his success on the pitcher's mound attracted the attention of major league scouts. By the age of 13, he had begun training with Colorado baseball guru Bus Campbell, who had helped almost every promising pitcher from the Denver area, including Goose Gossage and Brad Lidge.

Halladay attended Arvada West High School, where he led the school's baseball team to a 6A state championship in 1994. In 1995, after graduating from high school, he was selected by the Toronto Blue Jays in the amateur draft, in the first round, as the 17th overall pick. Halladay decided to forego his college baseball commitment to Arizona and sign with Toronto. He was promoted to the major-league club as a September call-up in 1998.

Career

Toronto Blue Jays (1998–2009)

1998–2001

In his second career start, against the Detroit Tigers on September 27, 1998, Halladay had what would have been the third no-hitter ever pitched on the final day of a regular season broken up with two outs in the ninth. The feat would have joined the combined no-hitter by four Oakland Athletics pitchers (Vida Blue, Glenn Abbott, Paul Lindblad, and Rollie Fingers) in 1975 and Mike Witt's perfect game in 1984. The bid was broken up by pinch hitter Bobby Higginson's solo home run, the only hit allowed in a 2–1 Toronto victory, as Halladay recorded his first major league win. Prior to the home run, the sole base runner had reached on an infield error in the fifth inning, as Halladay struck out eight and walked none.

In 2000, Halladay took a major step back from his promising rookie years and posted a disastrous 10.64 earned run average (ERA) in 19 games (13 of which he started) making his 2000 season the worst in history for any pitcher with at least 50 innings pitched. At the beginning of the 2001 season, Halladay was optioned to Class-A Dunedin to rebuild his delivery. Halladay's fastball was clocked as high as 95 mph (153 km/h), but it had little movement, and his pitches were up in the strike zone, which was ultimately the reason why his 2000 season was so unsuccessful. He considered quitting baseball. Instead, he worked in the minors with former Blue Jays pitching coach Mel Queen. The problem, Queen realized, was Halladay's total reliance on his strength: his attempt to overpower batters with straight-ahead pitches. Within two weeks, Halladay had altered his arm angle for a more deceptive delivery, and added pitches that sank and careened. Instead of throwing over the top, he chose to use a three-quarters delivery (the middle point between throwing overhand and sidearm). Originally a fastball pitcher, he became reliant on keeping his pitches low across the plate, regardless of the type of pitch thrown. The adjustments proved successful. After a month and a half, he was promoted to Double-A Tennessee, and a month later, to Triple-A Syracuse. In 2001, after being demoted to the minor leagues, Halladay immersed himself in the works of sports psychologist Harvey Dorfman. This exposure was at least partly responsible for resurrecting his career. By mid-season, he was back in the Blue Jays' rotation. He posted a 5–3 win–loss record with a 3.19 ERA for the Blue Jays in 16 starts in 2001.

2002–2006

In 2002, Halladay had a breakout season, finishing with a 19–7 record, while posting a 2.93 ERA with 168 strikeouts in 239.1 innings. Halladay was named to the American League All-Star team. Halladay continued his success in the 2003 season, posting a 22–7 record with a 3.25 ERA in 266 innings. He also recorded 204 strikeouts and only 32 walks, good for a 6.38 strikeout-to-walk ratio. Halladay pitched the first extra-inning shutout in the major leagues since Jack Morris in Game 7 of the 1991 World Series, leading the Blue Jays to victory over the Tigers on September 6. He pitched 10 innings and did not allow a hit until Kevin Witt doubled with two outs in the top of the eighth. Halladay won the American League Cy Young Award, while being once again named an All-Star and leading the Blue Jays to a surprising 86 victories. He was named by his peers as the Players Choice Awards AL Outstanding Pitcher. He was also named the Sporting News AL Pitcher of the Year and the Baseball Prospectus Internet Baseball Awards AL Cy Young Award winner.

In 2004, Halladay was placed on the disabled list twice due to right shoulder problems. In 133.0 innings, he went 8–8 with a 4.20 ERA. He walked 39 batters, seven more than he had walked in 2003 when he had pitched twice as many innings. He later revealed that he had been injured throughout the entire season with a "tired throwing arm", which he believed was from intense workouts in the preseason.

The 2005 season began successfully for Halladay, as he posted a 12–4 record with a 2.41 ERA in 19 starts. He was selected to his third All-Star team and was slated to be the starting pitcher for the American League at the All-Star Game in Detroit. However, on July 8, Halladay's leg was broken by a line drive off the bat of Texas Rangers left fielder Kevin Mench. As a result, he was replaced in the All-Star Game by Matt Clement of the Boston Red Sox, while Mark Buehrle of the Chicago White Sox was named the starting pitcher for the American League. Despite rehabilitation of his leg, Halladay would sit out the remainder of the season. On March 16, 2006, Halladay signed a three-year, $40 million contract extension through 2010. During that year, Halladay finished near the top of MLB in wins with 16. He was named to the American League All-Star Team as a reserve on July 3, along with four of his Blue Jays teammates. It marked the second-most appearances in club history, and Halladay's fourth as an All-Star. Although Halladay's strikeout total was lower in 2006 than in previous seasons, his ground ball/fly ball ratio, complete games, and innings pitched were all among the American League leaders.

2007–2009

Halladay was the American League pitcher of the month in April 2007, going 4–0, highlighted by a 10-inning complete-game win over the Detroit Tigers. However, he pitched poorly in his two starts in May, and on May 11 was placed on the disabled list and underwent an appendectomy. He returned to the rotation in his usual form on May 31 against the Chicago White Sox. Halladay went seven innings, giving up just six hits and allowing no runs on his way to his 100th career win. 2007 also saw Halladay hit his first career RBI. Against the Los Angeles Dodgers on June 10, his ground ball single to center field allowed John McDonald to score. He shut out the Seattle Mariners on July 22, allowing only three hits.