Derek Jeter Says Roy Halladay Was The Toughest Pitcher He Ever Faced

Now that Derek Jeter joined social media and he's got an ESPN documentary dropping later this month, the captain is doing everything he can to get involved. That includes answering questions from fans.

Jeter was eventually asked 'who was the toughest pitcher he ever faced.' "Toughest pitcher on me was Roy Halladay. Couldn't figure him out. The Best pitcher I ever faced was Pedro Martinez," he replied.

Pedro makes sense given the electric stuff that was obvious to the naked eye. Have to admit -- Doc Halladay surprised us a bit, but the numbers suggest Jeter's answer was well warranted.

The captain hit just .234 for his career against the late right-hander with an OPS of .571 (his lowest against any pitcher he faced more than 60 times).

Jeter was a contact hitter that we'd expect to have success against just about anyone he faced, however Halladay's pitch repertoire caused problems for the Hall of Famer shortstop. He possessed that classic changeup with an unusual ability to move fastballs both directions. Jeter was known as a "crash hitter" that had tons of success diving over the plate and utilizing the opposite field, similar to what we see today with Yankees first baseman Anthony Rizzo. Of course they aren't similar players in talent or results -- their strategies to take away the outer half of the plate were strikingly similar, though.

It's entirely possible that Jeter was uncomfortable enforcing his gameplan against a pitcher that succeeded on both sides of the plate. Pretty cool to see a craft pitcher get such recognition from an all-timer.