Roy Halladay Is Simply Amazing: Game 1 Wrapup

My Fellow Phans,

I think it is only fitting that I share my thoughts on Roy Halladay.

In the opener of this NLCS , we witnessed history. Roy Halladay took all doubters about his first postseason start and put them to rest pitching just the second no-hitter in MLB postseason history!

I can’t begin to express how amazing it is to watch this man pitch game in and game out. To say amazing, isn’t giving Doc enough credit. This no-hitter may be even more impressive than the perfect game he threw this season simply because of the situation.

After years of toiling away in Toronto, Halladay’s dream was to make the postseason and get that chance at a World Series championship. Well, it was worth the wait.

"It's surreal, it really is," Halladay said. "I just wanted to pitch here, to pitch in the postseason. To go out and have a game like that, it's a dream come true."

Halladay stepped onto the mound on Wednesday and delivered one of the, if not the, most memorable playoff performances in Philadelphia playoff history. 8 perfect innings; his only mistake a walk to Jay Bruce, who will go down in history for that walk that kept a no-hitter from being a perfect game. The only other player to accomplish this fear was Don Larsen in 1956 with a perfect World Series game.

Halladay threw just 104 pitches; 79 of those were strikes. Most of the Reds’ hitters were complimentary of the great Doc Halladay. "It's no fun out there," Reds slugger Joey Votto said. "It's like trying to hit nothing. He's an ace among aces."

Although Orlando Cabrera was not a fan. "He was basically getting every pitch," Cabrera said after the game. "We had no chance.

Amusing to say the least since Cabrera waved feebly at numerous Halladay offering on the night. He’s just not man enough to admit that he got flat out owned on Wednesday. We won’t dwell on it. If the Phillies don’t screw this thing up, Cabrera will be watching Halladay’s next start from his living room.

Anyways, back to the real story. Halladay entered the 9^th inning with history on his mind and not a sitting fan in the house. After two easy outs, only Brandon Phillips stood in the way between him and history.  Phillips hit a hapless bounder out front of home plate that Ruiz quickly pounced on and fired a strike to first base to retire the speedy second baseman.

Game over. History made.

Halladay’s humbleness has been one of the things most admired about this man, who quickly deferred all the credit to his catcher.   "I felt like we got in a groove early," Halladay said. "Carlos has been great all year, he helps me get into a rhythm early, throwing strikes."

So it was over and the crowd as CBP was going ballistic as the Phillies crowded around Halladay in celebration. Halladay became the fifth pitcher to throw two no-hitters in the same year. He joins Nolan Ryan, Allie Reynolds,  Virgil Trucks, and Johnny Vander Meer as the only pitchers to accomplish such a feat.

For 12 years, Halladay spent waiting for this day and in 1 single game, he made a career’s worth of history.

Until we meet again Phillies fans; Happy Readings and Go Phillies!s and Go Phillies!

PS: I will comment on Game 2 later today… Stay tuned!