The Grinch who stole SoxandPhils

I had planned this post for yesterday, but Nomar Garciaparra stole the day's news.

On Tuesday, when Roy Halladay last pitched, Christine admitted that she was getting sick of all the Christmas puns the headline writers are using when he pitches. (Except, of course, the title and accompanying picture on this post.)

The next morning, with my alarm is set to WIP, I woke to Angelo Cataldi marveling about how Doc not only pitched well but reported to the stadium an hour before his teammates.

Not only did he beat the bus to park, but he stayed after the game to get in some work:

Just don't expect any buyer's remorse from the Phillies. Halladay arrived at Disney's Wide World of Sports Complex at 2:15 yesterday afternoon, nearly an hour ahead of the team bus. By the time a group of future minor leaguers finished off a 7-4 win over the Braves, the team's regulars having long since departed for Clearwater, he was still in the visitors' clubhouse, wearing his workout clothes and eating a banana.

"You can really see what separates the great ones," a Phillies staffer said as he watched Halladay retreat to the trainer's room.

Now, Christine and I are pleased that he's on the team but can't believe the gushing that's going on. Is it that rare for a ballplayer to be this devoted to the craft? If so, I think that speaks more about the rest of the players than it does Halladay.

Of course, I won't be complaining about the results of his labor - quickly pitched games that get me to bed on time - but I just can't get over how quickly the fans and media have gone head over heels for Roy. {I'm not that surprised by the adoration - when was the last time the Phillies had a legitimate No. 1 starter with such a talented lineup behind him?}

(The Grinch cartoon is from a Boston Globe editorial about Nomar's coming home to retire.)