Roy Halladay has been one of the most dominant pitchers in baseball over the past decade, but after dealing with a few bad starts and loose command, the Phillies star has been placed on the disabled list and will have surgery on his shoulder.
Halladay hopes to return to the team in 2013, but his recovery is up in the air, although since it is early in the season he has the chance to return. Halladay won Cy Young awards in 2003 and 2010 and pitched a no-hitter in the playoffs for the Phillies and has been one of their best pitchers, but this season things have not gone right for him. He was diagnosed in La with shoulder issues and had an MRI and x-rays to confirm his injury.
Halladay will have the surgery to remove a bone spur in the right shoulder and doctors said he has the chance to return. Halladay has dealt with injuries over the past two years, including last season when he missed two months with a back issue. This season the team is 16-18 and Halladay is 2-4 with a 8.65 ERA, which is not what he usually puts up early in the season. Things started to feel bad in the shoulder in April and now Halladay will be out for a while.
"The doctor seemed pretty optimistic ... I could come back and be a lot more effective and have a chance to pitch this year and turn back the clock," Halladay told reporters before the visiting Phillies played the San Francisco Giants at AT&T Park.
"My biggest concern was I couldn't throw the ball where I wanted," said the 35-year-old. "I wasn't concerned about velocity; the pain wasn't overwhelming. I couldn't understand why my location was so poor..
"I didn't know if they had to tighten something up, I really didn't know.
"I kind of felt like it was good news, that I have a good chance to come back and pitch and help us try to get to the World Series. That's the ultimate goal. That's why I'm playing."
(Reuters)
