How Roy Halladay Could Have Been a Philadelphia Phillie
I have a question for all you Phillies fans out there: Do you want Roy Halladay?
Of course, that answer is yes on all accounts. There would probably be one or two saying no out of a survey of 100 people, but the large majority would answer that question with a yes, maybe with an adjective or two along with it.
Well, I know how to get Roy Halladay a spot in the Phillies rotation.
First, I’m going to hire a group of the top five scientists and engineers to figure out a way to create a time machine. Maybe Dr. Emmett Brown can help out a little.
The year we would go back to would be 1995.
Why 1995, you ask?
Well, here’s that answer: In the 1995 MLB Draft, the Philadelphia Phillies drafted outfielder Reggie Taylor with the 14th overall selection. Like 16 other teams, the Phils passed over high school pitcher Roy Halladay, who was drafted at No. 17 by the Toronto Blue Jays.
Mike Arbuckle, who is now the senior advisor to general manager Dayton Moore of the Kansas City Royals, was responsible for the scouting of players and the core of the current Phillies team, which includes Jimmy Rollins, Chase Utley, Ryan Howard, and Cole Hamels.
Arbuckle said that drafting Taylor over Halladay was his biggest regret with the Phillies, via Sam Mellinger’s Twitter. Take it as it is (Twitter you’re saying), but that’s not much of a surprise. It’s pretty obvious that would be one of this biggest mistakes.
Let’s compare Taylor to Halladay.
Taylor played just 14 games with the Phillies and 235 games with the Cincinnati Reds. While with the Reds he had 14 home runs and 57 RBI. In four seasons in the National League, Taylor had a .141 batting average. He didn’t fare any better in the American League; he had a .182 average in 11 at-bats with Tampa Bay.
He was a bust.
On the other hand, Halladay has been nothing less than a joy to watch. He’s arguably the best pitcher in baseball; he has been this season. “Doc” has a career record of 141-67 with a career ERA of 3.46. Halladay has 43 complete games in his career and 38 since 2003.
Those numbers are just a small indicator of how great he really has been. Last season, he was 20-11 with a 2.78 ERA with nine complete games. This season, he has been the same great Doc Halladay, with the MLB-best record of 10-1 and an ERA of 2.52 with three complete games and a shutout. He has 100 innings pitched in 13 games.
By the numbers, and common sense, Halladay was the better player. He was the best pick of that draft far and beyond.
Another way is to sell the farm and give another one or two major league players for Halladay. That’s, of course, if the Jays would trade Halladay. Why would they anyway? They are still in contention, but with Dustin McGowan coming back, the Jays could trade Halladay because they do have some holes on their roster.
The best way of getting Halladay into the Phillies’ uniform is to find Dr. Brown and the time machine, and convince Arbuckle and the Phils to draft him in 1995.