Brandy Halladay said she knew she would cry. She just didn’t know when.
The Baseball Hall of Fame enshrined six new members to their exclusive club over the weekend in Cooperstown, New York. One of those former players was Roy Halladay, who was one of the most dominating starting pitchers of his era.
In November 2017, Halladay died when the private plane he was flying crashed into the Gulf of Mexico off the coast of Florida, leaving behind his wife Brandy and sons Braden and Ryan.
In her late husband’s place on Sunday, Brandy Halladay took the stage and gave an emotional induction speech.
“I know how honored Roy would be sitting here today with such accomplished men who have represented this game so well over the course of all of your careers,” Brandy Halladay said, battling through tears as she spoke. “Thank you for being such a good example to him and to supporting him in his career and all of his efforts.”
“This is not my speech to give,” she continued. “I’m going to do the best I can to say the things I believe Roy might have said or would have wanted to say if he was here today.”
Brandy Halladay went on to thank the baseball writers who voted for Halladay in his first year on the ballot. She also thanked Halladay’s scouts, coaches, mentors, general managers, teammates, friends, fans and their respective families.
“Roy’s natural talent was obviously a huge part of this,” Brandy Halladay said. “Without the unconditional and continued support from every one of you, he never could have dedicated himself to being the best ballplayer he could be. I say it a lot, but it takes a village, and we truly have a great one.”
Halladay’s career spanned from 1998-2013 with the Toronto Blue Jays and Philadelphia Phillies. A two-time Cy Young winner, Halladay threw a perfect game against the Marlins and a no-hitter in a playoff game against the Reds in 2010, when he was with Philadelphia.
His career numbers were 203-105, a 3.38 ERA, 67 complete games and 2,117 strikeouts in 2749.1 innings. His plaque shows him with no logo on his hat as a nod of love to both organizations.
“I think that Roy would want everyone to know that people are not perfect,” Brandy Halladay said. “We are all imperfect and flawed in one way or another. We all struggle, but with hard work, humility and dedication, imperfect people still can have perfect moments.
“Roy was blessed in his life and career to have some perfect moments. But I believe that they were only possible because of the man he strived to be, the teammate that he was, and the people he was so blessed to be on the field with.”
The rest of this year’s Hall of Fame class is made up of Mariano Rivera — the first unanimous selection in history — as well as Edgar Martinez, Mike Mussina, Lee Smith and Harold Baines.
