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Jeff Pearlman

March 27, 2000

He has been called "a strikeout pitcher" for as long as he can remember. That's what happens when you're a high school mound legend with a nifty nickname (Doc), as Roy Halladay was while growing up outside Denver. "People label you one thing," says the 22-year-old Halladay, "and it sticks. But it's not always true." The Blue Jays' No. 3 starter does, in fact, throw a fastball in the low 90s. But what most impresses manager Jim Fregosi is not his ability to strike batters out but his ability to induce them into hitting harmless ground balls. "He's a young kid," says Fregosi, "but he's mature enough to know a groundout is just as good—better even—than a strikeout." Last season Halladay fanned only 82 batters in 149? innings, but he was the only Toronto starter with an ERA under 4.00. "It's not too sexy," says Halladay. "but who cares?"