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“I want the Phillies organization to know, I want the fans to know how much I enjoyed my time there. How much they meant to me, how much they meant to my family and what a major part of my career they were,” he said.

But retiring as a Blue Jay was his only choice.

“To me, the biggest thing was had I not been fortunate enough to come up with the Blue Jays and have the people around me that I did, and have the people develop me that I did, I would have never had that chance to play with the Phillies,” Halladay said.

“You know, I could have very easily been out of baseball in 2000, 2001 and never had a shot. To me, that was the most important thing. I felt like everything the organization had done for me, the player they allowed me to become, I felt like it was really important to acknowledge that. Had I not had those chances, I would have never been able to play for the Phillies.”

Photo by Postmedia Network

Halladay is eligible to be considered for the Baseball Hall of Fame in 2019.

He is survived by his wife, Brandy Halladay — 2018 would have marked their 20th anniversary — and his sons, Ryan and Braden.

The Blue Jays released a statement on Twitter Tuesday afternoon, which read: “The Toronto Blue Jays organization is overcome by grief with the tragic loss of one of the franchise’s greatest and most respected players, but even better human being. It is impossible to express what he has meant to this franchise, the city and its fans. Our thoughts and prayers are with his family and friends.”