The Washington Nationals, and the sports world, are saddened by the loss of Roy Halladay. The pitcher lost his life Tuesday in a plane crash.
Along with the rest of the baseball world, the Washington Nationals mourn the sudden loss of Roy Halladay.
Halladay, a private pilot, died Tuesday when his single-engine plane crashed into the Gulf of Mexico of the western Florida coast near Tampa. He was 40.
A dynamic pitcher with the Toronto Blue Jays and Philadelphia Phillies, Halliday own the Montreal Expos and Nats after the move. During his time in Toronto before 2005, the Jays and Expos met annually. When he traded after the 2009 season, Washington became a division rival.
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Over 19 career starts, Halladay went 12-2 with a whopping ERA of 2.50. The Nats/Expos are the only National League team he won double-digit decisions over. His NL debut with the Phillies came at Nationals Park on April 5, 2010. A nine-strikeout, one-run game over seven innings.
In winning the Cy Young that year, Halladay tossed a perfect game in Miami against the Florida Marlins and later pitched the second no-hitter in playoff history, a one-walk, eight-strikeout gem against the Cincinnati Reds in Game 1 of their NL Divisional Series. Not a bad playoff debut.
Baseball is a tight-knit community. Halladay’s death touched off a wall of grief on social media. He was a genuine good guy who loved flying, his community and family. Writers, fans and teammates alike spared no emotion in describing his warmth, kindness and caring.
It is difficult to put into words what he meant to the game and to us watching from afar. Halladay’s numbers should merit induction to Cooperstown. Even if he was an average pitcher, the flowing tributes make him a Hall of Fame person.
Although he tormented the Nats with the Phillies, the shock of the news brought nothing but tributes and sadness from fans and the team.
The tender age of 40 is much too young to die. Although his playing days were long over, the best years of Halladay’s life were ahead. He is not the first player turned pilot to pass away, teammate Cory Lidle crashed his plane in weather into a Manhattan skyscraper in 2006.
We do not know what caused Halladay’s plane to crash. He had hundreds of hours in the log book. He flew with experience.
In the end, none of it mattered. His wife and children were not on the lane, but their struggle begins. As fans, the loss is sad. Our heartfelt condolences to his friends, teammates, fellow fans in Philly and Toronto along with his family.
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Halladay was a baseball treasure.