Top five moments of Roy Halladay’s Phillies, Blue Jays career
With the sudden and tragic passing of Roy Halladay, let’s take a look back at some of the best moments in his Phillies and Blue Jays career.
It’s already a shame for a beloved sports figure to pass away; it’s even more tragic when they pass well before their time. Unfortunately, that became a reality Tuesday as former Phillies and Blue Jays pitcher Roy Halladay was killed in a plane accident in the Gulf of Mexico. Considering his tremendous success on the field and his attitude off the field, many of Halladay’s former teammates and colleagues shared their sadness about his death.
Let us celebrate and remember Halladay’s Hall-of-Fame-worthy by looking back at some of the top moments of his career, both in Philadelphia and Toronto.
No. 5: Traded to Philadelphia
After back-to-back World Series appearances, the Phillies were the powerhouse of the National League. However, after losing to the Yankees in 2009, general manager Ruben Amaro, Jr. wanted to add another piece to the team to help them bring the championship trophy back to Philadelphia.
That move proved to be trading for one of the top pitchers in the American League since the turn of the century, Roy Halladay. He had already won one Cy Young award and had been in the top five for voting in each of the last four seasons. It seemed hard to outdo the Cliff Lee trade from the 2009 trade deadline, but Amaro did just that.
The biggest thing about the trade was that Halladay wanted to come to Philadelphia and win a World Series. The Phillies nearly acquired him at the trade deadline that year, but the deal never came together and they instead traded for Lee. Meanwhile, Halladay had to watch the 2009 playoffs from home. He told Sports Illustrated in an article after the trade that he couldn’t watch the World Series that year because the trade never came to be.
In return, Philadelphia sent Kyle Drabek, Michael Taylor and Travis D’Arnaud to the Blue Jays. In addition, Lee was traded to Seattle in exchange for J.C. Ramirez, Phillippe Amount, and Tyson Gillies. What could’ve happened that season with both Lee and Halladay in the rotation will forever be one of the biggest “what ifs” in Philadelphia sports, but Halladay soon proved himself more than worthy of the trade the next season.
No. 4: Halladay wins his second Cy Young Award
The 2010 Phillies were easily the best team in the National League that year during the regular season, finishing the year five wins better than the second-best team in the league. Leading the way during the season was none other than Halladay. He finished the year with a 21-10 record as the team was 22-11 in his starts.
Halladay’s regular season was one for the ages as he led the National League with 21 wins, nine complete games, four shutouts, 250.2 innings pitched, 1.1 walks per nine innings, and a 7.30 strikeout-to-walk ratio. His resume that year included two historical starts (more on those later) as well as plenty of other dominant performances.
When the end of the season rolled around, it was hard to argue against anyone other than Halladay winning the Cy Young that year. In fact, he was the unanimous winner that year, becoming just the 20th pitcher in MLB history to achieve that feat. Halladay’s dominance that year every Phillies fan will remember for as long as they live.
Halladay wins his first Cy Young
Well before he ever came to Philadelphia, Halladay took home his first Cy Young award with the Blue Jays in 2003. Considering just three years earlier he finished the season with a 10.64 ERA and was sent back to the minors, Halladay’s turnaround was quite impressive.
After an All-Star appearance in 2002, Halladay kicked it up a notch in 2003. He finished the year with a 22-7 record, 3.25 ERA, 1.071 WHIP, and 6.38 strikeout-to-walk ratio. His 22 wins, 36 starts (which no pitcher nowadays will ever have), 266.0 innings pitched, and strikeout-to-walk ratio all led the American League.
Halladay received all but two of the 28 first place votes, with Chicago’s Esteban Loaiza receiving the other two. He was the first Blue Jay to earn the award since Roger Clemens in 1998, and no other has won it since.