Halladay comes up aces for Jays
TORONTO -- The Jays had the perfect solution to get them out of their recent doldrums -- give the ball to Roy Halladay.Halladay (10-3) put on another dazzling performance in Toronto's 4-1 win over the St. Louis Cardinals on Monday night at Rogers Centre. The big right-hander allowed five hits and struck out five in pitching his American League-leading fifth complete game, helping the Blue Jays end a four-game skid in the process.
"The team's been struggling, and he steps on the mound and gives you exactly what you need," said manager John Gibbons. "He's in an elite class, and that's what those guys do."
The former Cy Young Award winner held the potent Cardinals offense at bay all night with his patented, and devastating, curveball in joining Chicago's Jon Garland as the AL's only 10-game winners.
But Halladay was also able to keep the Cardinals hitters off balance early and often with his changeup and pinpoint-accurate fastball. That trifecta of pitches was more than enough to stymie the lumber of Albert Pujols and Co.
"That is the Roy Halladay I know," said St. Louis shortstop David Eckstein, who faced Halladay many times when Eckstein played for the Angels. "He goes out there and just pretty much dominates that strike zone with all his pitches. It's tough for a lineup that hasn't seen him that much to get a good sense of what he's going to do, because he does so many different things. He can get you out one way in one at-bat and go to his other repertoire for the next at-bat. It's tough."
The Blue Jays had a tough time over the last couple of weeks, finishing a lackluster 13-game road trip on Sunday with a 3-0 loss in Houston that dropped them to 4-9 on the trip. Enter Halladay, who is now 6-1 after Toronto losses.
"I'd rather I come in after we won every time, but I don't think it changes your approach," said Halladay. "If a team is struggling, everybody's trying to get us out of it, and that sometimes puts on too much pressure. It's important to just try and stay consistent, stick to your approach and execute. I don't think you can change anything in a situation like that, because sometimes it makes it tougher."
Halladay rebounded impressively from his third loss of the season on Wednesday, a 2-0 defeat against the Chicago Cubs, and has now allowed only six earned runs over his last seven starts.
"Unbelievable," said Shea Hillenbrand. "He's quiet and takes care of his business. He goes out and battles each and every night out there. I think that can rub off."
A Halladay Monday
St. Louis at Toronto, June 13, 2005
Roy Halladay (10-3) picked up the victory with his fifth complete game of the season in 15 starts. His career high is nine complete games, recorded in 36 starts in 2003. His line Monday:
IP H R ER BB SO ERA
9.0 5 1 1 0 5 2.33
Key numbers for Halladay:
Pitches-strikes: 101-72; Groundouts-flyouts: 13-9;
Season strikeouts-walks: 75-15; WHIP: 0.94
"I've been fortunate to see him for three years, and I'm always impressed," added Gibbons. "Not only does he have the great arm, but he's such a competitor. He does all the things he needs to do to win."
Hillenbrand and the rest of his teammates helped give Halladay all the offense he needed in the first two innings, scoring two runs in the first frame and a single run in the second.
Alex Rios led off the bottom of the first with a double off St. Louis starter Jeff Suppan (5-6), moved to third on Frank Catalanotto's groundout and scored on Vernon Wells' sacrifice fly. Hillenbrand followed with his seventh home run of the season, a blast that was deposited into the left-field seats.
In the second, Russ Adams gave Toronto a 3-0 lead after singling home Aaron Hill, who had doubled three batters before.
John Mabry hit his fourth homer of the year in the fourth inning for St. Louis' lone run. In all, three batters were able to reach third base, with Halladay facing just five over the minimum.
"The best way to hit him is to try and get him out of the game," said Eckstein, who had two hits. "I don't think film does justice to him."
Toronto capped the scoring in the eighth off reliever Cal Eldred, with Reed Johnson's RBI single scoring Orlando Hudson.
"We got some big hits at the right time tonight," said Hudson. "It felt good to get a win after the road trip we just had."
With exactly half the number of complete games as he has wins, Halladay doesn't care much about the scintillating numbers he is starting to accumulate or the electrifying outings that have people remembering his 2003 campaign, in which he won 22 games and was honored as the best pitcher in the American League.
"I think my goals are the same, game to game," he said. "I just try to go out and make quality pitches, nothing more, regardless of what happens, good or bad. I'm just going to keep the same approach, and be aggressive. I'm not going to pay too much attention on what's going on or anything like that. I'm just going to focus on what I can do."
And what he can do right now is plenty.
Source: http://toronto.bluejays.mlb.com/
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