Business as usual for Halladay

Some things change, and some things stay the same.

In the case of Roy Halladay, his address has changed, the team he plays for has changed, yet everything else is is pretty much business as usual.

A solid candidate for National League player of the month, Doc posted a 5-1 record with a 1.47 ERA, 5 walks, and 39 strikeouts. While Halladay is not only the talk of the National League, his first six starts last year were very eerily similar:


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2009: 5-1, 3.75 ERA, 5 BB, 38 K’s, 44 IP
2010: 5-1, 1.47 ERA, 4 BB, 39 K’s, 49 IP

As expected, Doc is having great success mowing down National League hitters – surrendering nine less earned runs and six less hits this season compared to this same point in 2009.

So why is it that Roy Halladay is having near carbon copy seasons, yet he’s receiving much more attention as a Philadelphia Phillie?

For one, in the American League everyone was fixated on Zack Greinke for the first half and unfortunately Doc played second fiddle to him for the better part of the season.

Then of course, Roy Halladay has all this added pressure of being the new ace for the back to back National League Champion Philadelphia Phillies. Although there may be dozens and dozens of more cameras watching his every move, it doesn’t seem to phase Halladay one bit.

Even with all the added pressure and scrutiny, it seems like Doc only displays one of two emotions every time he takes the hill for the Phillies: win or secretly be pissed when he loses.

Oddly enough, his facial expressions are the exact same no matter what the outcome.

Ian Hunter

Ian has been writing about the Toronto Blue Jays since 2007. He enjoyed the tail-end of the Roy Halladay era and vividly remembers the Alex Rodriguez "mine" incident. He'll also retell the story of Game 5 of the 2015 ALDS to his kids for the next 20 years.