Scott Franzke Talks Calling Halladay's Perfect Game And No-Hitter

PHILADELPHIA (CBS) - The tragic death of former Philadelphia Phillies pitcher Roy Halladay has left fans, former teammates and players all expressing grief and relaying special moments tied to Halladay's career.  One of those includes the voice of the Phillies, Scott Franzke, who tells The Chris Stigall Show on Talk Radio 1210 WPHT that Halladay was fun to watch and to call, especially those 2010 and 2011 key games.

"When he thew the perfect game it was just over a month after my son was born, and obviously the playoff's no hitter, that's just other worldly to think that a guy in his first post-season start, in any post-season start for that matter is going to throw a no-hitter.  I think back and there are some various singular games in there. I remember one against Washington. It was kind of hot and a real battle and you could see that warrior mentality turn on in Roy. The Phillies' (Shane) Victorino had given them a 2-1 lead at some point in the sixth inning, and you could just see the gear shift and Roy would go to a higher gear. You just had a sense at that moment that he said all right, I've got a lead, it's the sixth inning and I'm not giving it up, and I'm not coming out of this game.  And he was a guy who completed games where now days nobody does that."

Franzke says that when comparing Halladay to players within a particular era, Roy was the cream of the crop when it came to pitching.

"He's a guy who probably would have succeeded in the 60's and 70's, and 80's in a different era. He was that good. I think it was Brandon McCarthy with the Dodgers, one of his comments was, 'Roy Halladay was your favorite player's favorite player'. So many guys were in awe of him. So many guys were trying to compete against him, but also, when we talk about the Phillies, the guys who got a chance to watch him work, day in and day out. There was no other way to put it, they were in awe, they were inspired by Halladay.

The plane that Halladay was flying crashed into the Gulf of Mexico Tuesday. The eight-time All-Star and two-time Cy Young Award winner who pitched a perfect game and a playoff no-hitter for the Phillies was 40 years old.