Roy Halladay

Most teams have played a little over 40 games, and despite my barely passing grades in every single math class I've ever taken, I still managed to figure out that the MLB season is roughly a quarter over.

The good thing about making predictions this early is that if they turn out to be correct, boom. You're a genius. A pundit. A prophet.

If they're wrong. So what? Nobody can read the future, get off my ass will ya?

Stage Set for World Series Repeat, But Which One?

Moving into interleague play, the Philadelphia Phillies are off to a hot start toward a third consecutive World Series appearance. Is it too soon to start rating the Phillies' players' performance? Perhaps, but I'd like to try anyway.

Ladies and Gentlemen, your early-season 2010 Philadalphia Phillies MVPs.

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There is a lot being made about Roy Halladay's high pitch count over his past few starts. Over the last four starts he's made he hasn't thrown any fewer than 118 pitches and is averaging 123 with his latest 132-pitch outing against the Pittsburgh Pirates this past Tuesday.

However, is that really so bad for a guy who has an MLB-high 53 complete games over the past eight seasons?

For once, Jamie Moyer knows what it takes to pitch well and lose. Oh, the irony

Moyer was brilliant for the Phillies as they faced the Chicago Cubs on Wednesday night, allowing only two earned runs on four hits and one walk in seven innings, while striking out seven and lowering his ERA to 4.30, in the rematch of the teams that faced each other back in 1986 when Moyer made his major league debut against Steve Carlton.

Baseball-reference has a stat that is rarely ever used: bequeathed runners. 

It's the number of runners on base when a pitcher leaves the game.  Subsequently, there's also a stat on how many of these runners score.  These runs are added to the starter's ERA, even though the relief pitcher was pitching and, ultimately, allowed the runs to score. 

Want a full year of data? Look at the stats from 2009. 

It's easy to root for a winning team, but what makes it even easier is when that winning team is made up of a bunch of likable guys.

The Phillies have a roster full of character players who truly enjoy the game. They play hard and they like each other. And as proven by their appearance in the previous two World Series, this team is good.

Here's a look at my 10 favorite Phillies on a squad with a lot of guys to like.

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This just in: Roy Halladay is one of a kind.

He’s been baseball’s best pitcher over the past decade and he’s showing no signs of slowing down. With that said, most major league pitchers can probably improve themselves simply by watching Doc work his mastery on the mound like clockwork.

Halladay’s teammate, Cole Hamels, can probably learn a valuable lesson from Roy, too.

Is speed more important than power? Is experience more valuable that youth? If you had to pick one man to lead your franchise, who would you choose?

In this special Would You Rather: MLB Edition I take a look at some of the burning questions in the game. Would you rather have Doc Halladay or Tim Lincecum? A-Rod or Evan Longoria?

What about anchoring your rotation for the next decade: King Felix or Zack Greinke? Is Jose Reyes a better leadoff hitter than Ichiro? Can anyone other than Mariano Rivera claim to be the game’s best closer?

It was one series that was guaranteed to finally bring fans into the seats at Rogers Centre over the course of this year.

In the year following Roy Halladay's move to Philadelphia, the Phillies were set to travel to Toronto for a three-game interleague set from June 25-27.

Expecting a total crowd of 90,000 for the series, the decision was officially announced today by Paul Beeston, President of the Blue Jays, as a result of the upcoming G20 Summit which is set to take place the same weekend in downtown Toronto.

A review of each season's Most Valuable Player voting typically reveals the best players in the game at that particular time. Although each player's team's regular season success is a factor, the vote tally usually has a strong correlation to statistical leader boards.

Those players have almost always earned this recognition through quantifiable performance from RBI, HRs and batting average to wins and saves. Individual team MVP selections often mirror the same approach.

However, determining which players are most indispensable can often entail a much more complex equation.