Roy Halladay is going to the baseball Hall of Fame.

Roy Halladay was one of the greatest baseball players to wear the Toronto Blue Jays uniform. Halladay was Toronto’s greatest ever pitcher. He was one of the Blue Jays’ most intense competitors, one of the best role models for those around him, and a pillar of work ethic. Aside from his performance on the mound, he was hailed as the consummate “good guy” off the field. Halladay, along with his wife Brandy, was a prolific philanthropist, spending time and money working with charities in and around Toronto, most notably setting up “Doc’s Box” at the Rogers Centre to host children from the Hospital for Sick Children, Children’s Wish, and the Jays Care Foundation. He was everything you wanted your favourite ballplayer to be. He was talented, intense, exciting to watch, and a good person.

Roy Halladay meant a lot of things to a lot of people. He may be the most fondly remembered athlete in Toronto Blue Jays history, and he was welcomed lovingly by all of Philadelphia after the trade. He won Cy Young Awards and hurled no-hitters. He dazzled fans with his consistency and efficiency. We Torontonians got to lay claim to Halladay during an era when he was one of the only reasons to go to a game. I cherish the memory of a rare mid-season sell-out in 2009 featuring the marquee matchup of Halladay against the hated Yankees, and the even more hated former Blue Jay, AJ Burnett. Halladay was in typical form, beating the Yanks 5-1 in a complete game masterclass.

I find it’s both too simple and too difficult to lionize an athlete. Most of us never met Halladay, and even fewer knew him personally. We have recollections of his performance on the field and we’ve read and seen news items about his good deeds away from the ballpark. This is all we need, and often all we have to keep our loving memories of him alive. However, I don’t think it’s my place to eulogize him. He exists for me mostly as a beacon of pitching excellence, and now his terrific body of work will be immortalized in Cooperstown.

How terrific is that body work? Probably more impressive than one might realize or remember.

Roy Halladay left the game in 2013 with some staggering numbers. In order to more fully appreciate his genius, it’s helpful to look at some of his advanced metrics compared to all of the other starting pitchers enshrined in the Hall of Fame. There are 64 other Major League starting pitchers* in the Hall, and I’ve dug into some advanced statistics on all of them to see how Halladay stacks up. Halladay’s major “counting” stats (wins, strikeouts, etc.) are perhaps not as great as they should be, mostly because his career was cut short due to injury, but also because of the era in which he pitched. 300-win/3,000-strikeout pitchers have been a dying breed for some time now, and the wisdom of advanced metrics places far less importance on those numbers.

However, for any old-fashioned fans of cumulative and counting stats (which, of course, have their merits), Halladay’s are still impressive. Over his 16 seasons he amassed 64.3 WAR. This is a higher total than 46.2% of the Major League starting pitchers in the Hall. Halladay compiled 203 wins. Wins are not a very revealing statistic for a pitcher anymore. Look only to Halladay’s peer Pedro Martinez, to see that in a similar era and career span (18 seasons), Martinez won 219 games. Halladay owns 2,117 strikeouts. That’s more than 47.7% of the Major League starting pitchers in the Hall. Halladay pitched more complete games (67) than Tom Glavine, Pedro Martinez, Mike Mussina, and John Smoltz, and hurled more shutouts (20) than Martinez or Smoltz. In an era of higher ERAs, Halladay set his at 3.38. That’s lower than Tom Glavine, Burleigh Grimes, Jesse Haines, Waite Hoyt, Ted Lyons, Jack Morris, Mike Mussina, Herb Pennock, Robin Roberts, Red Ruffing, and Early Wynn.

One counting stat line that I find revealing is his win-loss percentage (W-L%). Halladay had a remarkable W-L% of .659. Of the Major League starting pitchers in the Hall of Fame, only Whitey Ford, Lefty Grove, Pedro Martinez, and Christy Mathewson own a better percentage. However, all four of those pitchers pitched for very good teams. Whitey Ford had Yogi Berra and Mickey Mantle hitting in some of the Yankees’ greatest ever lineups for a majority of his career. Lefty Grove had Jimmie Foxx, Al Simmons, and Mickey Cochrane on his side through most of his career. Pedro Martinez pitched for a dominant late-90s/early-00s Red Sox team in his prime, and Christy Mathewson anchored the staff of the New York Giants for the first sixteen years of the previous century, and they were one of baseball’s earliest dynasties. I would never want to denigrate these four all-time great pitchers, but their win-loss statistics surely got a bump from the tremendous lineups for which they pitched. Roy Halladay pitched the majority of his career for some stunningly mediocre Blue Jays teams. Yet he owns the fifth-highest W-L% of any Major League starting pitcher in the Hall of Fame. This demonstrates to me that Halladay was so good that he could counteract his teams’ middling lineups to win a game on his own. To compile this W-L%, he would have had to have held opponents to few enough runs to allow those Blue Jays offenses to coast by. It’s also worth noting that he was doing a lot of his pitching against the power packed mid-2000s Yankees and Red Sox teams.

Below are some lists that show some more advanced metrics and where Halladay’s place is amongst the other Major League starting pitchers in the Hall of Fame. Some of these metrics may bear a little explaining. I’ll be as concise and simple as possible.

ERA+

ERA+ adjusts a pitcher’s ERA to account for ballpark factors and the league’s ERA. Like other “plus” statistics, it grades relative to 100. 100 is an average score. Below 100 is below average, and above is better than average. This type of statistic makes it a little simpler to compare ballplayers across generations.

1. Pedro Martinez: 154

2. Lefty Grove: 148

3. Walter Johnson: 147

4. Ed Walsh: 146

5. Addie Joss: 142

6. Kid Nichols: 140

7. Mordecai Brown: 139

8. Cy Young: 138

9. Christy Mathewson: 136

10. Grover Cleveland Alexander, Randy Johnson, Rube Waddell: 135

13. John Clarkson, Whitey Ford: 133

15. Greg Maddux: 132

16. Dizzy Dean, Roy Halladay, Sandy Koufax: 131

19. Carl Hubbell, Hal Newhouser: 130

21. Amos Rusie: 129

22. Bob Gibson, Stan Coveleski, Tom Seaver: 127

25. Tim Keefe: 126

26. Lefty Gomez, Jim Palmer, John Smoltz, Dazzy Vance: 125

30. Juan Marichal, Mike Mussina: 123

32. Bob Feller, Eddie Plank: 122

34. Don Drysdale: 121

35. Joe McGinnity: 120

36. Red Faber, Bob Lemon, Old Hoss Radbourn, Warren Spahn: 119

40. Bert Blyleven, Tom Glavine, Ted Lyons, Vic Willis: 118

44. Gaylord Perry: 117

45. Jim Bunning, Steve Carlton, Ferguson Jenkins, Phil Niekro, Eppa Rixey: 115

50. Robin Roberts, Mickey Welch: 113

52. Chief Bender, Waite Hoyt, Nolan Ryan: 112

55. Jack Chesbro: 111

56. Jesse Haines, Red Ruffing: 109

58. Don Sutton, Burleigh Grimes: 108

60. Pud Galvin, Early Wynn: 107

62. Herb Pennock, Jack Morris: 105

64. Catfish Hunter: 104

65. Rube Marquard: 103

As you can see, Roy Halladay is tied with Sandy Koufax and Dizzy Dean at 16 out of 65 pitchers. He stands one point behind Greg Maddux. Take a second to look at all of the names behind Halladay’s. It’s an astounding list of all-time greats. Not a lot else needs to be said.

FIP

FIP, meaning Fielding Independent Pitching, essentially only calculates a pitcher’s value based on the three true outcomes (walks, strikeouts, homeruns). These are plays which do not include the defense. It’s purely a pitcher vs. hitter statistic. The result is an ERA-like number, where lower scores are better. And like ERA, the league average shifts from season to season.

1. Ed Walsh: 2.02

2. Rube Waddell: 2.03

3. Addie Joss: 2.25

4. Christy Mathewson: 2.26

5. Chief Bender: 2.29

6. Mordecai Brown: 2.41

7. Walter Johnson: 2.42

8. Eddie Plank: 2.45

9. Jack Chesbro: 2.67

10. Sandy Koufax: 2.69

11. Cy Young: 2.84

12. Grover Cleveland Alexander: 2.88

13. Bob Gibson: 2.89

14. Rube Marquard: 2.90

15. Pedro Martinez: 2.91

16. Tim Keefe: 2.92

17. Pud Galvin, Vic Willis: 2.96

19. Nolan Ryan: 2.97

20. Don Drysdale: 3.02

21. Juan Marichal, Joe McGinnity, Tom Seaver: 3.04

24. Gaylord Perry: 3.06

25. Steve Carlton, Old Hoss Radbourn: 3.15

27. Dazzy Vance: 3.18

28. Bert Blyleven, Stan Coveleski, Randy Johnson, Hal Newhouser: 3.19

32. Jim Bunning, Dizzy Dean: 3.22

34. John Smoltz, Don Sutton: 3.24

36. Whitey Ford, Greg Maddux: 3.26

38. Ferguson Jenkins, Mickey Welch: 3.28

40. Eppa Rixey: 3.29

41. John Clarkson: 3.35

42. Lefty Grove: 3.36

43. Roy Halladay: 3.39

44. Red Faber: 3.43

45. Warren Spahn: 3.44

46. Bob Feller, Kid Nichols: 3.48

48. Jim Palmer, Herb Pennock, Robin Roberts: 3.50

51. Carl Hubbell: 3.55

52. Mike Mussina: 3.57

53. Phil Niekro: 3.62

54. Early Wynn: 3.64

55. Burleigh Grimes: 3.65

56. Catfish Hunter: 3.66

57. Amos Rusie: 3.71

58. Waite Hoyt: 3.76

59. Bob Lemon: 3.79

60. Lefty Gomez: 3.88

61. Red Ruffing: 3.93

62. Jack Morris: 3.94

63. Tom Glavine, Jesse Haines: 3.95

65. Ted Lyons: 4.01

Obviously, Halladay stacks up a little less favourably here. He’s still in great company, and owns a lower FIP than Warren Spahn and Jim Palmer, and is just behind Lefty Grove, which is impressive. For some perspective, through most of Halladay’s career, the league leading FIP in either league hovered between 2.20 and 3.20, and in 2011, Halladay led the National League with a 2.20 mark.

WHIP

WHIP is an easy one. It stands for Walks and Hit per Inning Pitched, and, you guessed it, shows the average number of walks and hits a given pitcher surrenders per inning.

1. Addie Joss: 0.968

2. Ed Walsh: 1.000

3. Pedro Martinez: 1.054

4. Christy Mathewson: 1.058

5. Walter Johnson: 1.061

6. Mordecai Brown: 1.066

7. Juan Marichal: 1.101

8. Rube Waddell: 1.102

9. Sandy Koufax: 1.106

10. Chief Bender: 1.113

11. Eddie Plank: 1.119

12. Grover Cleveland Alexander, Tom Seaver: 1.121

14. Tim Keefe: 1.123

15. Cy Young: 1.130

16. Catfish Hunter: 1.134

17. Ferguson Jenkins, Don Sutton: 1.142

19. Greg Maddux: 1.143

20. Don Drysdale: 1.148

21. Old Hoss Radbourn: 1.149

22. Jack Chesbro: 1.152

23. Carl Hubbell: 1.166

24. Robin Roberts: 1.170

25. Randy Johnson: 1.171

26. John Smoltz: 1.176

27. Roy Halladay: 1.178

28. Jim Bunning: 1.179

29. Jim Palmer: 1.180

30. Gaylord Perry: 1.181

31. Bob Gibson, Joe McGinnity: 1.188

33. Pud Galvin: 1.191

34. Mike Mussina: 1.192

35. Warren Spahn: 1.195

36. Bert Blyleven: 1.198

37. Dizzy Dean: 1.206

38. John Clarkson, Vic Willis: 1.209

40. Whitey Ford: 1.215

41. Kid Nichols: 1.224

42. Mickey Welch: 1.226

43. Dazzy Vance: 1.230

44. Rube Marquard: 1.237

45. Steve Carlton, Nolan Ryan: 1.247

47. Stan Coveleski: 1.251

48. Phil Niekro: 1.268

49. Eppa Rixey: 1.272

50. Lefty Grove: 1.278

51. Jack Morris: 1.296

52. Red Faber: 1.302

53. Hal Newhouser: 1.311

54. Tom Glavine: 1.314

55. Bob Feller: 1.316

56. Early Wynn: 1.329

57. Bob Lemon: 1.337

58. Waite Hoyt: 1.340

59. Red Ruffing: 1.341

60. Ted Lyons, Herb Pennock: 1.348

62. Amos Rusie: 1.349

63. Jesse Haines: 1.350

64. Lefty Gomez: 1.352

65. Burleigh Grimes: 1.365

There’s Roy Halladay, solidly in the upper-middle of this pack of Hall of Famers.

H/9

H/9 is the average number of hits a given pitcher will surrender per 9 innings pitched.

1. Nolan Ryan: 6.6

2. Sandy Koufax: 6.8

3. Pedro Martinez, Ed Walsh: 7.1

5. Randy Johnson, Addie Joss: 7.3

7. Walter Johnson, Tom Seaver, Rube Waddell: 7.5

10. Bob Gibson, Jim Palmer: 7.6

12. Mordecai Brown, Bob Feller, Catfish Hunter: 7.7

15. Chief Bender, Whitey Ford, Tim Keefe, Christy Mathewson, Eddie Plank: 7.9

20. Hal Newhouser, John Smoltz, Don Sutton: 8.0

23. Steve Carlton, Don Drysdale, Bob Lemon, Juan Marichal, Amos Rusie: 8.1

28. Jim Bunning, Jack Chesbro, Lefty Gomez, Vic Willis: 8.2

32. Ferguson Jenkins, Gaylord Perry, Warren Spahn: 8.3

35. Grover Cleveland Alexander, Bert Blyleven, Jack Morris, Phil Niekro: 8.4

39. John Clarkson, Greg Maddux, Dazzy Vance, Early Wynn: 8.5

43. Joe McGinnity, Old Hoss Radbourn, Mickey Welch: 8.6

46. Roy Halladay: 8.7, Carl Hubbell, Mike Mussina, Cy Young: 8.7

50. Dizzy Dean, Tom Glavine, Lefty Grove, Rube Marquard, Kid Nichols, Robin Roberts: 8.8

56. Stan Coveleski, Red Ruffing: 8.9

58. Red Faber: 9.0

59. Eppa Rixey: 9.3

60. Burleigh Grimes: 9.5

61. Pud Galvin: 9.6

62. Jesse Haines, Waite Hoyt, Ted Lyons: 9.7

65. Herb Pennock: 9.8

Halladay surrendered more hits on average than a lot of these Hall of Fame alumni, but that may well be expected given the era and the ballparks that he pitched in. This stat does not adjust for league average or ballpark factors, so it can indeed be a bit raw and it certainly does not paint a complete portrait of a pitcher’s value.

HR/9

HR/9 shows how many homeruns a pitcher gives up per 9 innings pitched.

1. Chief Bender, Mordecai Brown, Jack Chesbro, Walter Johnson, Addie Joss, Tim Keefe, Joe McGinnity, Eddie Plank, Rube Waddell, Ed Walsh, Vic Willis: 0.1

12. Stan Coveleski, Red Faber, Pud Galvin, Christy Mathewson, Old Hoss Radbourn, Eppa Rixey, Amos Rusie, Mickey Welch, Cy Young: 0.2

21. Grover Cleveland Alexander, John Clarkson, Burleigh Grimes, Rube Marquard, Kid Nichols, Herb Pennock: 0.3

27. Dizzy Dean, Lefty Grove, Waite Hoyt, Hal Newhouser, Dazzy Vance: 0.4

32. Bob Feller, Lefty Gomez, Jesse Haines, Ted Lyons, Red Ruffing, Nolan Ryan: 0.5

38. Whitey Ford, Bob Gibson, Carl Hubbell, Bob Lemon, Greg Maddux: 0.6

43. Steve Carlton, Don Drysdale, Tom Glavine, Jim Palmer, Gaylord Perry, Tom Seaver, John Smoltz, Warren Spahn, Early Wynn: 0.7

52. Bert Blyleven, Roy Halladay, Sandy Koufax, Juan Marichal, Pedro Martinez, Phil Niekro, Don Sutton: 0.8

59. Jim Bunning, Randy Johnson, Jack Morris, Mike Mussina: 0.9

63. Catfish Hunter, Ferguson Jenkins, Robin Roberts: 1.0

Like H/9, this statistic does not take into account league average or ballpark factors. So, like H/9, Halladay’s number should indeed be higher than most on this list, as he pitched in a slugging heavy era mostly in bandbox ballparks. The top forty positions on this list are mostly occupied by dead-ball era pitchers, who pitched when homeruns were a relative rarity.

BB/9

BB/9 shows the average number of bases on balls (or walks) a pitcher surrenders per 9 innings.

1. Pud Galvin: 1.1

2. Addie Joss: 1.4

3. Cy Young: 1.5

4. Grover Cleveland Alexander, Christy Mathewson: 1.6

6. Old Hoss Radbourn, Robin Roberts: 1.7

8. Carl Hubbell, Greg Maddux, Juan Marichal: 1.8

11. Mordecai Brown, Roy Halladay, Ed Walsh: 1.9

14. Ferguson Jenkins, Mike Mussina: 2.0

16. Chief Bender, Jack Chesbro, Dizzy Dean, Walter Johnson, Joe McGinnity, Eddie Plank: 2.1

22. Don Drysdale, Tim Keefe, Eppa Rixey: 2.2

25. Stan Coveleski, Rube Marquard, Kid Nichols, Herb Pennock, Gaylord Perry, Don Sutton: 2.3

31. Bert Blyleven, Jim Bunning, John Clarkson, Jesse Haines, Waite Hoyt, Ted Lyons, Pedro Martinez, Rube Waddell, Mickey Welch: 2.4

40. Catfish Hunter, Warren Spahn, Dazzy Vance: 2.5

43. Tom Seaver, John Smoltz: 2.6

45. Red Faber, Lefty Grove, Vic Willis: 2.7

48. Burleigh Grimes: 2.8

49. Phil Niekro, Jim Palmer: 3.0

51. Whitey Ford, Bob Gibson, Tom Glavine: 3.1

54. Steve Carlton, Sandy Koufax, Red Ruffing: 3.2

57. Randy Johnson, Jack Morris: 3.3

59. Early Wynn: 3.5

60. Hal Newhouser: 3.8

61. Lefty Gomez: 3.9

62. Bob Lemon: 4.0

63. Bob Feller, Amos Rusie: 4.1

65. Nolan Ryan: 4.7

This list, and his number eleven ranking on it, says a lot about Halladay. Arguably, the base on balls is era-proof and ballpark-proof. This stat asks the question: can a pitcher control his pitches? Now, obviously, offensive trends come and go and generally batters are more swing-prone in today’s game than in the past. There have also been league-mandated changes to the size of the strike zone at various points in the game’s history. All of that said, Roy Halladay asserts himself as one of the game’s greatest control artists with his 1.9 BB/9 rate. In an era of super sluggers, smaller strike zones, and smaller ballparks, Halladay managed to stay in the strike zone more often than not, and clearly did not like to pitch around any of the big boppers in the high-powered offenses of his day.

K/9

K/9 tells us how many strikeouts a given pitcher will average per 9 innings pitched.

1. Randy Johnson: 10.6

2. Pedro Martinez: 10.0

3. Nolan Ryan: 9.5

4. Sandy Koufax: 9.3

5. John Smoltz: 8.0

6. Bob Gibson: 7.2

7. Steve Carlton, Mike Mussina: 7.1

9. Rube Waddell: 7.0

10. Roy Halladay: 6.9

11. Jim Bunning, Tom Seaver: 6.8

13. Bert Blyleven: 6.7

14. Don Drysdale: 6.5

15. Ferguson Jenkins: 6.4

16. Dazzy Vance: 6.2

17. Bob Feller, Greg Maddux, Don Sutton: 6.1

20. Juan Marichal, Gaylord Perry: 5.9

22. Jack Morris: 5.8

23. Whitey Ford, Phil Niekro: 5.6

25. Hal Newhouser: 5.4

26. Dizzy Dean, Tom Glavine, Lefty Gomez, Walter Johnson, Ed Walsh: 5.3

31. Lefty Grove, Catfish Hunter: 5.2

33. Chief Bender: 5.1

34. Jim Palmer: 5.0

35. Christy Mathewson: 4.7

36. Tim Keefe, Amos Rusie, Early Wynn: 4.6

39. Eddie Plank, Robin Roberts: 4.5

41. Warren Spahn: 4.4

42. Rube Marquard: 4.3

43. Carl Hubbell: 4.2

44. Red Ruffing: 4.1

45. Bob Lemon: 4.0

46. Mordecai Brown, Jack Chesbro, John Clarkson: 3.9

49. Grover Cleveland Alexander: 3.8

50. Vic Willis: 3.7

51. Addie Joss, Old Hoss Radbourn: 3.6

53. Mickey Welch: 3.5

54. Cy Young: 3.4

55. Burleigh Grimes, Kid Nichols: 3.3

57. Red Faber: 3.2

58. Herb Pennock: 3.1

59. Stan Coveleski, Waite Hoyt: 2.9

61. Jesse Haines, Joe McGinnity: 2.8

63. Pud Galvin, Eppa Rixey: 2.7

65. Ted Lyons: 2.3

This one is really cool. Perhaps because Halladay was renowned for his efficiency, I never thought of him as a big strikeout pitcher. But here we are. Look at that! Number 10! He’s behind all of the obvious guys, but look at who he’s ahead of. Tom Seaver! Bob Feller! Apparently, one doesn’t need to be a 3,000 strikeout pitcher to be a dominant strikeout artist. Combine this with his BB/9 rate, and you’re looking at the textbook definition of a control pitcher. Which leads us to the last category.

K/BB

K/BB shows a pitcher’s ratio of strikeouts to walks.

1. Pedro Martinez: 4.15

2. Roy Halladay, Mike Mussina: 3.58

4. Greg Maddux: 3.37

5. Randy Johnson: 3.26

6. Juan Marichal: 3.25

7. Ferguson Jenkins: 3.20

8. John Smoltz: 3.05

9. Christy Mathewson: 2.96

10. Sandy Koufax: 2.93

11. Don Drysdale: 2.91

12. Rube Waddell: 2.88

13. Jim Bunning: 2.86

14. Ed Walsh: 2.81

15. Bert Blyleven: 2.80

16. Don Sutton: 2.66

17. Tom Seaver: 2.62

18. Robin Roberts: 2.61

19. Dizzy Dean, Walter Johnson: 2.57

21. Gaylord Perry: 2.56

22. Addie Joss: 2.53

23. Pud Galvin, Dazzy Vance: 2.43

25. Chief Bender: 2.40

26. Bob Gibson: 2.33

27. Grover Cleveland Alexander, Carl Hubbell: 2.31

29. Cy Young: 2.30

30. Steve Carlton: 2.26

31. Catfish Hunter: 2.11

32. Eddie Plank: 2.10

33. Old Hoss Radbourn: 2.09

34. Tim Keefe: 2.08

35. Mordecai Brown, Nolan Ryan: 2.04

37. Lefty Grove: 1.91

38. Rube Marquard: 1.86

39. Phil Niekro: 1.85

40. Jack Chesbro: 1.83

41. Whitey Ford, Warren Spahn: 1.80

43. Jack Morris: 1.78

44. Tom Glavine: 1.74

45. Jim Palmer: 1.69

46. John Clarkson: 1.66

47. Kid Nichols: 1.48

48. Bob Feller: 1.46

49. Hal Newhouser: 1.44

50. Mickey Welch: 1.43

51. Vic Willis: 1.36

52.Lefty Gomez, Herb Pennock: 1.34

54. Joe McGinnity: 1.32

55. Early Wynn: 1.31

56. Red Ruffing: 1.29

57. Eppa Rixey: 1.25

58. Stan Coveleski: 1.22

59. Red Faber: 1.21

60. Waite Hoyt: 1.20

61. Burleigh Grimes: 1.17

62. Amos Rusie: 1.14

63. Jesse Haines: 1.13

64. Bob Lemon: 1.02

65. Ted Lyons: 0.96

Number 2! K/BB is a very important statistic for pitchers. This stat asks the question: how often are you walking batters relative to how often you strike them out? Based on Halladay’s BB/9 and K/9 stats, the natural conclusion was that he would be leading the pack. And he and Mike Mussina just about are. If only Pedro Martinez wasn’t such a freak show, Halladay and Mussina would be top of the class. This stat line is just another piece in the puzzle that shows Halladay’s mastery of the strike zone, and his unwillingness to issue a free pass to a batter.

Roy Halladay was undoubtedly dominant throughout the majority of his career. I think because of the Blue Jays teams he pitched for during the bulk of his prime years, the magnitude of his achievements on the mound can get overlooked. Roy Halladay didn’t just have a great pitching career, he had one of the greatest pitching careers in all of baseball history. To look at his numbers as they compare to those of all the other Major League starting pitchers in the Hall of Fame is to see proof positive that he stacks up favourably to all of the game’s greatest masters.

However you choose to remember Roy Halladay, whether as a guiding light for some frustrating Blue Jays teams, or as the anchor of some dominant Phillies teams, use this wonderful occasion to take some time to celebrate his legacy. Think back to your favourite memories of him on the mound and take some solace knowing you got to witness one of the game’s greatest. They don’t come around all that often, and they’re not all as terrific as Roy Halladay.

*I repeat the phrase “Major League starting pitchers” throughout because I’ve left out pitchers who were primarily relievers (Rollie Fingers, Goose Gossage, Trevor Hoffman, Mariano Rivera, Lee Smith, Bruce Sutter, and Hoyt Wilhelm). I also left out Dennis Eckersley, which was tough, but just over half his career was spent in the bullpen, and he arguably did his greatest work there. I also didn’t include Negro League pitchers, as the statistics kept for many of them are not complete or are possibly inaccurate. This includes Satchel Paige, who spent the bulk of his great career in the Negro Leagues. He only pitched in the Major Leagues for 6 seasons, and debuted at the age of 41.

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