roy halladay is in my hall of famer collection

the late roy halladay is in my hall of famer collection, represented by this card:

that would be his 2017 topps archives signature series 2004 topps buyback card numbered 15/23.  here's the back:

i first became aware of halladay thanks to his near no-hitter on the last day of the 1998 season. i was watching espn as i tried to do each year on both opening day and the final day of the regular season due to the sheer volume of baseball broadcast those days. i don't recall if that game between the blue jays and tigers was shown in its entirety, or if there was just a break-in to the action, but i recall seeing bobby higgingson hit a two-out dong in the 9th inning to spoil halladay's masterpiece.

i next saw halladay in baltimore in july of 1999. i didn't see him pitch - david wells started for the blue jays in the game that i attended at camden yards - but i did see him on the street a few hours prior to the game. it was well over 90 degrees and humid, and he was wearing jeans. i did not approach him however, as he was walking over to a group of people who i believed were teammates and spouses.  i did get to see him pitch in person in april of 2000.  i was in toronto for the first time and headed to the skydome to see the mariners take on the blue jays.  he didn't pitch too well - four runs allowed in four innings of work, and i must say that i remember the performances of alex rodriguez and edgar martinez more than that of halladay.  still, i paid attention to what halladay was doing up north, and in 2001 (my first season of online fantasy baseball), i picked him up for his final start of the season in need of a miracle to get in to the money. he delivered with a shutout that propelled me upward in the standings, but sadly, i still fell short of a money slot.

after that, i followed his career closely and was somewhat disappointed when he was traded by the blue jays after the 2009 season. still, i was happy that he won his second cy young award and threw a perfect game during the regular season and a no-hitter in the nlds in his first season in philadelphia, but i was very disappointed that he and the phillies did not beat the giants in the nlcs that same season.

halladay finished his career with 203 wins and 2,117 strikeouts and a 3.38 era. i was not sure if he would be inducted in to the hall of fame with those numbers, but he made it on his first ballot in 2019.  it is a tragedy that he was not alive to celebrate the honor, as he died in that plane crash in november of 2017.

here's my hall of famer collection as its been documented so far:

babe ruth - 2003 topps tribute world series edition world series tribute relic 351/425

honus wagner - 2001 topps tribute relic

tris speaker - 2011 topps tribute dual relic green parallel 53/75

george sisler - 2004 topps tribute hall of fame tribute relic

dizzy dean - 2001 topps tribute relic

bob feller - 2001 topps archives

jackie robinson - 2004 topps clubhouse collection clubhouse relic

roberto clemente - 2005 donruss greats hall of fame souvenirs relic

warren spahn - 1999 upper deck century legends epic signatures

mickey mantle - 2000 upper deck legends legendary game jerseys relic

willie mays - 1997 topps willie mays reprints autograph

al kaline - 2001 fleer greats of the game autographs

duke snider - 2003 upper deck sp authentic chirography hall of famers 144/250

bob gibson - 2001 fleer greats of the game autographs

hank aaron - 2004 topps originals 1979 topps all-time record holders rbi 03/32

frank robinson - 1995 upper deck autographs

harmon killebrew - 2000 upper deck legends legendary signatures

pee wee reese - 2001 topps tribute relics

jim hunter - 1998 donruss signature series significant signatures 0736/2000

willie stargell - 2000 upper deck legends legendary signatures

gaylord perry - 2003 topps finest finest moments autographs

rollie fingers - 2018 topps archives signature series 1978 topps buyback 1/3

reggie jackson - 2018 topps tier one tier one talent autographs 19/60

steve carlton - 2018 topps five star career year autographs

mike schmidt - 2002 topps archives autoproof 1980 topps buyback 048/147

don sutton - 2001 fleer greats of the game

tony perez - 2004 fleer national pastime 2002 fleer greats authentic autograph buyback 30/59

dave winfield - 2003 upper deck sp authentic chirography hall of famers 121/350

gary carter - 1999 fleer sports illustrated greats of the game autograph collection

dennis eckersley - 2017 topps archives signature series 1984 topps buyback 47/99

paul molitor - 2016 topps museum collection archival autographs 021/125

bruce sutter - 2003 topps all-time fan favorites

jim rice - 2005 upper deck past time pennants past time signatures

andre dawson - 2000 fleer greats of the game autographs

alan trammell - 2001 fleer greats of the game autographs

roy halladay - 2017 topps archives signature series 2004 topps buyback 15/23

pete rose* - 2018 panini flawless legendary signatures 15/25

barry bonds* - 2001 bowman heritage autographs

you can find the full list of hall of famers (and some not - yet) that i aim to include in this collection at my want list site.

*not currently a member of the hall of fame