Roy Halladay

Roy Halladay was a Major League Baseball pitcher. He was considered the best pitcher in the Majors at one point. He pitched the 20th perfect game in the history of the league in 2010, recorded 2,000 strikeouts during his career, and won the Cy Young Award in both the American and National Leagues. He was elected to the Hall of Fame in his first year of eligibility (January 2019).

He was chosen by the Toronto Blue Jays in their first pick in the 1995 MLB draft. He made six American League All-Star teams during 12 seasons with the Toronto Blue Jays from 1998 to 2009. He was traded to the Phillies before the 2010 season. He pitched the second perfect game in franchise history on May 29, 2010, against the Miami Marlins in his 11th start with the Phillies. Later in the season, he threw a no-hitter against the Cincinnati Reds in the National League Division Series.

During his final two seasons in Philadelphia, he struggled with back and shoulder injuries and retired after the 2013 season. His career record was 201–105.

He was inducted into the Colorado Sports Hall of Fame in April 2015.

Halladay was born on May 14, 1977, in Denver, Colorado. He was raised a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints although he reportedly did not practice toward the end of his life. He and his wife, Brandy, were the parents of two sons.

Halladay’s life ended abruptly on November 7, 2017, when the plane he was piloting went down in the Gulf of Mexico off the coast of Florida. He was 40 years old. Reports indicate he had prescription drugs in his system.[1]

His Blue Jays number was retired on March 29, 2018. On March 2, 2019, Phillies free agent acquisition Bryce Harper, who wore uniform number 34 from his debut with the Washington Nationals in 2012, announced that he would not wear the number 34 as a member of the Phillies, stating that "Roy Halladay should be the last one to wear it" for the Phillies. Harper chose to wear number 3 instead.[2]