It wasn't a no-hitter, a perfect game or an outing destined for too prominent a position in baseball history. But Roy Halladay's eight innings of excellence Saturday explained as much as anything why he will be in the Hall of Fame the instant he is eligible.

On a night when the Phillies could have been toppled by an early deficit, Halladay settled to retire 21 consecutive St. Louis Cardinals, restore calm to Citizens Bank Park and give the Phillies a chance to rally for an 11-6 victory.

"The great thing about Roy is he bounces back," Raul Ibanez said. "He’s able to refocus and get back on the task at hand. That’s a credit to his professionalism, his intensity and his tenacity on the mound."

Check out my column on Halladay, a story on Raul Ibanez and all the complete and comprehensive coverage of Game 1 of the NLDS in the Daily Times Sunday and on delcotimes.com