It's Roy, not Ray. It's Halladay, with two l's, not Holiday.

It's Roy Halladay of the Toronto Blue Jays, and it's time to get to know him because he's going to make the American League All-Star team again. He's the ace of a surprise team that appears to be capable of contending all season, and he is deep into a winning streak that few have ever matched.

	Blue Jays ace Roy Halladay hasn't lost since April 15.

The Blue Jays call him Doc, as in Doc Holliday. And, for the last two months, to borrow a line, no one has operated like the Doc. Halladay has won 11 straight starts, which is not to be confused with winning 11 straight decisions. That's not easy, either, but this is far more difficult. In the last 25 seasons, only Halladay, Brad Radke (1997), John Smoltz ('96) and Ron Guidry ('79) have won 11 straight starts during a season (LaMarr Hoyt won 11 straight over two seasons, 1983-84). Whitey Ford won 11 straight, Bob Gibson did it twice, but Pedro Martinez never has, nor has Randy Johnson, Roger Clemens, Curt Schilling or just about anyone else you can think of. Sandy Koufax never won 11 straight starts.

What's so astonishing about this streak is that Halladay didn't win any of his first six starts this season. He was terrific in spring training until his last start, when he got pounded.

Perhaps that's what fouled up his mechanics, leading to the loss of his release point. Late in the spring, he was involved in a near brawl with the Phillies after throwing close to a couple of hitters, but that didn't appear to contribute to his slow start. "In April, he just lost his stuff," Blue Jays manager Carlos Tosca said. "He just lost the sink on his ball."

Without his best pitch, Halladay got hammered in his Opening Day start against the Yankees on March 31. He got pounded again in April by the Yankees, then the Red Sox, and got to May 1 with an 0-2 record and a 4.89 ERA. He gave up eight home runs, two fewer than all last year. He didn't pitch that badly, but he made big mistakes and had bad times.

Question of the Week

Who should be the starting pitcher for the AL in the All-Star Game? Joe Morgan The problem is that there are so many AL starters who have had an outstanding first half. The sentimental choice would be Roger Clemens, who just won his 300th game (and then came close to a no-hitter). Roy Halladay, Jamie Moyer, Esteban Loaiza and others all have pitched well. But the fact that there are numerous deserving candidates might be a good reason to pick Clemens. In that case, the sentimental favorite can be the best choice -- so I'll go with Clemens. Tom Candiotti You can't ignore what Roy Halladay has done. He gave up some home runs early, but he pitched twice against the Yankees in the first month, and you remember how hot New York's offense was at the start of the season. Since going 0-2 to open the campaign, all Halladay has done is win 11 straight starts. His curveball has been dynamic. Oakland's Mark Mulder and others deserve consideration, but you have to give Halladay the nod.

But starting May 1, Halladay has gone 11-0 with a 2.95 ERA. He has pitched into the seventh inning in all 11 starts. He has walked a total of eight batters, and struck out 67, in 82 1/3 innings. He has received tremendous run support from the league's highest-scoring team. In his last 11 starts, the Blue Jays have scored 84 runs, nearly eight per start. He needed them in an 11-8 win over the Red Sox on June 1. He gave up seven runs -- six of those came early in the game -- but he fought through his problems and found a way to win.

Overall, he has been brilliant. The sink is back on his fastball, which is a devastating pitch when thrown as it reaches 92-94 mph. His breaking ball also has been terrific. Against the Expos in his last start, he "had no-hit stuff," one scout said. "All he did was throw that hard sinker and his breaking ball. Two pitches, that's it. And they had no chance."

None of this should come as a big surprise. Last year, Halladay won 19 games. There were times when he pitched even better than he has during the 11-game winning streak.

Last year, that was the surprise season. Remember, this is the same pitcher who, in 2000, was 4-7 with a 10.64 ERA. He was so bad that then-Blue Jays manager Buck Martinez left him in Dunedin, Fla., out of spring training so he could basically start over in A-ball. It was quite a demotion, but it was done to restore his confidence, and to reunite him with pitching coach Mel Queen, who previously had done good work with him. To Halladay's credit, he didn't complain about going back to A-ball a year after pitching in the big leagues. Instead, he acknowledged how much work he needed to do, then went to work to fix his flaws.

Now he's back as Toronto's ace, in every sense of the word. He never wants to come out of a game. He always wants the ball. His last start, Sunday against Montreal, he was pitching on three days' rest for the first time in his career. Instead of worrying whether his arm could take it, he dominated. He is, after all, big (6-foot-6, 230 pounds), young (26 years old), strong and determined. He has similar traits of those of a former teammate, Roger Clemens.

But even the great Clemens never won 11 starts in a row.

Tim Kurkjian is a senior writer for ESPN The Magazine and a regular contributor to Baseball Tonight. E-mail tim.kurkjian@espnmag.com.