It’s been an unbelievable year for pitching accomplishments in MLB this season. Things got started with Ubaldo Jimenez’s no-hitter for the Rockies against the Braves. That was only the start of things to come as A’s pitcher Dallas Braden then tossed the 19th perfect game in modern MLB history against the Rays on Mother’s Day. Then on Saturday night, Roy Halladay threw a perfect game in a 1-0 win over the Florida Marlins, the second perfecto in Phillies history and the 20th in MLB history.
Halladay of course retired all 27 batters he faced, doing it by throwing 115 pitches, 75 of which were strikes. Doc struck out 11 batters, got eight groundouts, and six flyouts in the win. Halladay’s perfect game obviously stands out on its own, but it’s just another example of Roy’s all-around brilliance. Halladay has made 11 starts this season and this was his third complete game shutout. While the chances of Halladay winning 25 games is slim since he’s 7-3 on the year with about 23 starts left to make on the season, there’s no doubting his brilliance. Roy’s breaking ball was sharp, his sinker was dropping like a mofo, and everything he threw was moving. You know what? Things really weren’t all that much different for Halladay on the hill this time around from every other time he makes a start.
Halladay is one of the best pitchers in baseball and he’s been that for a long time now. I’m glad he now has a perfect game on his resume to go along with his numerous other accomplishments and I’m glad he got the closure he hasn’t had since his rookie season. MLB Network explained that Halladay came within an out of tossing a perfect game against the Tigers in his rookie year but Bobby Higginson burned him with a home run. This time around, Halladay got Ronny Paulino to ground out to third to finish off the job. Roy Halladay now has a Cy Young Award, six All-Star selections, two 20-win seasons, and a perfect game on his resume. There’s no debating his greatness.
