As many of you know Roy Halladay died in a plane crash as the pilot. A mixture of drugs were found in his system which could and probably contributed to the plane crash. He was addicted to pain pills in a large part to injuries suffered the last two years of his career. This is something to remember while we are all concerned about mental health.
This also tells us how we hardly know any celebrity. Roy Halladay was a tough great pitcher who helped charities. But he also had an addictive personality and a vulnerable side. That is why it is good we are bringing these mental health issues to the fore front. People need help, but to be able to help them we must know about the problem, so we shouldn’t be judgmental when dealing with the problem. I know I have been guilty about that.
I saw Halladay pitch in Kansas City once when I had a class there. When I told some of the locals, I went to see the Royals play they asked “Why”. Imagine what they thought when the Royals actually beat Roy Halladay. It just goes to show with baseball you never know.
In 2008 the Philadelphia Phillies won the World Series and in 2009 the won the NL pennant and lost the World Series to the Yankees. Thinking they needed an ace pitcher they traded for Roy Halladay. He came through for them. He won the Cy Young Award which he deserved leading the Phillies to another division title. In the first game of the playoffs Halladay threw a no hitter. He had one walk and eight strikeouts and a game score of 94. He split his two starts in the championship series the Phillies lost to the Giants.
In 2011 he could have won the Cy Young award again. He finished second. The Phillies easily won their division. Halladay won the first game in the division series against the Cardinals. However, the series was tied 2-2 going in the deciding game 5. Halladay got the ball. He gave up a leadoff triple and the runner scored later in the inning. The Phillies lost 1-0 on a great game by Chris Carpenter. I remember watching and it was a great game. A tough loss for the hall of famer. He is missed.
