Ryan Howard is as big as a building. At least, that’s the perception of the pilot of a toy plane in the Phillies’ clubhouse.
The plane approaches the Big Piece’s shoulder as he dresses for a game. It rises in altitude and just clears his head. The flight plan is the same as the gadget rises over a reporter. But tragedy strikes as it hits coordinator of baseball communications Kevin Gregg’s head.
The pilot, Roy Halladay, usually has better control of his toy — and his emotions. However, he and fellow starter Roy Oswalt are in hysterics after committing this act of clubhouse terrorism.
“It’s all in fun,” Halladay said. “We’re here every day, and we need to do some different things to lighten it up and just have a good time. I like flying the plane and the helicopter. The guys get a kick out of it. It’s a diversion, and that’s a good thing.”
Yes, there is another side to Halladay, the Phillies ace with such tunnel vision that you would swear he doesn’t notice the batter at the plate.
“I have a good time, too,” Halladay said. “I’m not all business, all the time.”
It just seems that way since Halladay is a workout freak who studies endless video.
“Everybody needs to escape for at least a little bit,” Oswalt said. “That’s even so for [Halladay]. He’s incredibly competitive. We all are, but we need to relax and have a good time. It’s all about baseball and trying to play as well as possible — but we need to do some things to keep us loose.”
