Roy Halladay Apologizes For Poor Performances, Pitching Injured
Roy Halladay apologized to Philadelphia fans, saying he let them down by trying to push himself to pitch injured.
The Phillies starter, who is scheduled to have surgery to remove bone spurs and repair a frayed labrum and partially torn rotator cuff in his pitching shoulder, said he felt terrible for his struggles on the mound this season.
Speaking to reporters for four interrupted minutes, Roy Halladay apologized for his poor pitching and said he understands if fans are upset with him.
“I’ve been thinking just the last couple of days. I just felt like I should address the fans. I know there is a lot of mixed opinions on pitching, not pitching, all that kind of stuff. I know there are people who are disappointed about how I pitched the last two years. I know there are a lot of people who are very supportive.
“So, one, I just wanted to thank them for their support. And my heart goes out to all of the people who spend all of their money and go out to the games and don’t get to see what they want to see. I know I’m not the whole team. There are still a lot of guys out there and it’s a fun team to watch. But I feel bad that I’m missing the time that I am. I feel bad for the fans that I’m missing the time.
“It’s tough. You feel an obligation to the organization, to your teammates, to the fans to try to go out and pitch. Especially on a competitive team that sells out. For me, that was a big factor. If I’m playing for a last-place team and there’s things going on, you maybe speak up. But we have a chance to go win a World Series and we have sellouts and fans have expectations. You want to do everything you can to try to make it work.”
Halladay had already addressed his early season struggles, refusing to pin it on his ailments and saying instead the problems were in his head.
In his first two starts, Roy Halladay was 0-2 with a 14.73 ERA.
“It’s simplifying and getting back to basics and not trying to force things,” Halladay said in April. “It’s letting things happen and trying to force things. It’s a game of failure and I’ve had my fair share. Some days you’re a horse and some days you’re a horse’s ass and I’ve been a horse’s ass for a little while. It’s something that I’ve dealt a lot with in the past and I feel like I can overcome. The more you want it, the harder it is. You almost have to really back that off and put some perspective in the whole thing.”
As Roy Halladay apologizes, it may not take back his poor performance, but it seems to have won him respect among fans and sports writers.
