>All gods are dead - let us will the rise of Roy Halladay.
>
>Roy Halladay is God.
>
>2 games 16 IP 13 Hits 2 runs (only 1 earned) 17 Ks 2 BBs ERA of 0.56
>
>And oh yeah, he's 2-0.
>
>Thank you, Toronto

He must be thrilled to have some bats behind him. The recent profile in Sports Illustrated mentioned that last year 14 of his last 18 starts were against the Yankees, Red Sox, and Rays. His ERA in those games was 2.98, he averaged almost 8 innings a start, struck out more than five times as many hitters as he walked -- and had a record of 7-9.

What's really amazing about Halladay is he was almost out of baseball nine years ago. He was ready to quit and his wife talked him out of it. After being drafted as a phenom and some early success, he went so bad he was demoted all the way to Class A. In 2000 he had an ERA of 10.64 in the bigs, which remains the highest ever for a season among pitchers who threw 60 or more innings. A Blue Jays pitching instructor named Mel Queen fixed him. He changed his grip, his release point, everything. Maybe that's why he works so hard, because he knows what it's like to lose it. Quite a story to go from that to being the best pitcher in baseball. (I still submit Tim Lincecum, the freak, as 1-B). I like redemption stories <g>.