http://www.wtsp.com/news/plane-registered-to-former-mlb-pitcher-roy-halladay-crashes-in-gulf-of-mexico/489944976

 

Horrible. All the signs point to him being killed. Brings back memories of Jose, Cory Lidle, Roberto Clemente, Thurman Munson.

 

 

It has been confirmed that Roy Halladay was the pilot who perished in the crash.

 

 

R.I.P Doc.

 

 

I was at the perfect game - RIP to a great pitcher.

 

 

[No message]

I was quite saddened to hear this news when it occurred. I remember being on tenterhooks when the news came out that the plane registered to him had crashed, waiting for the official announcement [which came at 415 pm day of].

 

I'd like to share a quick personal story.

 

In 2011, I was going through quite a lot. Depression being what it is, it was hitting me pretty hard at the time. I was living in Ocala at the time, and I came down to spend time with my father, who still lives in South Florida, in May of that year. I said to him in late April, "let's go to a game while I'm down there." He said, "OK, pick one and we'll go."

 

I looked through, tried to map things out best I could, and I chose a date. May 10th. Why May 10th? After looking through the schedule, I saw, if everything lined up and stayed as planned, and they didn't get hurt, that game would be Josh Johnson vs Roy Halladay. Thankfully, the baseball gods came through, and I got that game.

 

To this day, it is probably the best game I have ever attended, thanks to the pitching matchup. We won 2-1, Chris Coghlan driving in the winning run in the 8th inning. Thanks to the pitching of both Halladay and Johnson, I got exactly the game I wanted, and a game that, for the time, lifted my spirits, made me forget about my troubles.

 

I'm glad I got to see Halladay pitch once. One of the best pitchers of our generation, a throwback to an older time where pitchers consistently finished what they started. I hope his family is able to find peace. As @HanleyDavidson stated, this does bring back memories of Jose. Not nearly as difficult a loss, at least for me, as many of us considered Jose to be "extended family" due to his time as a Marlin and what he meant to the team and the city, but as a Baseball fan, losing Halladay, such a great pitcher and, by all accounts, a great man off the field, this loss hit deep.

 

Rest in Peace, Roy. God's rotation is getting another ace.