I think I'm in love

Please tell me you saw Roy Halladay's performance tonight. I am in awe. Aside from former Longhorns, Halladay is BY FAR my favorite professional athlete in any sport. It's not even close. And that's saying something considering there couldn't be a more generic, uninteresting team than the Toronto Blue Jays. But my goodness, Halladay is just a joy to watch perform.

Here's what he did tonight:

W, 9 IP (complete game), 4 ER, 7 hits, 1 BB, 14 K

But that doesn't even tell the story. The dude threw 133 pitches! Who does that in the majors anymore? Nobody - except soft tossers like Livan Hernanez. To truly appreciate this performance, you had to watch it. Basically, the Angels had no chance against Doc tonight.

He cruised through the first six innings while the Jays staked him to a 6-0 lead. Through six innings, he had given up 3 hits and struck out 8 batters. But when he came out for the 7th inning, he clearly wasn't sharp. As is typical for Halladay, he eased up a bit and let the Angels score four runs. (As an aside, he seriously always does that. It's like he conserves energy just so he can pitch the entire game. It messes with his ERA just a bit, but I guess I can't complain.)

So, after giving up 4 runs in the 7th and being past the 100 pitch mark, you figure Cito Gaston goes to the bullpen. That's just what MLB managers do these days. But not with Halladay. He came back out for the 8th inning. And he dominated. He struck out Kendrick, got Figgins to ground out, and then struck out Abreu.

Up 6-4 heading into the top of the 9th, you figure Cito Gaston would go to his closer. Halladay was over 115 pitches. That's just what MLB managers do these days. But not with Halladay. He came back out for the 9th inning. And yes, he dominated. He struck out Vlad Guerrero and then struck out Torii Hunter. After he allowed a bloop single to Kendry Morales, Halladay was at 130 pitches. No big deal. Halladay finished the game by getting a called strike three on Maicer Izturis on a nasty breaking ball.

Game over. Complete game. 14 strikeouts. 133 pitches. Hell, the dude threw 88 strikes! There are so many pitchers these days who can't even throw 88 pitches in an entire game.

Roy, I love you.