Phillies to honor controversial legend with bobblehead
From 1964 to 1974, the late Dick Allen was considered one of the best hitters in Major League Baseball. He’s not in the National Baseball Hall of Fame, but the Phillies plan to honor him with a bobblehead. Not even Babe Ruth can say that.
This Friday at Citizens Bank Park, fans will receive a Dick Allen bobblehead when the Phillies open up a three-game home series against the Dodgers. It’s the first of four bobblehead promotions scheduled for 2023, but not the first time the Phillies have honored Allen.
In 1994, Allen was inducted into the Phillies Wall of Fame. He was named to the Philadelphia Sports Hall of Fame in 2010, and in 2020, the Phillies retired his No. 15 jersey. Noteworthy achievements to be sure, but Phillies fans of a certain age will tell you that the bespectacled star deserves to be in the Hall of Fame.
Allen was a seven-time All-Star, 1964 National League Rookie of the Year and 1972 American League MVP. He batted .292 with 351 homers, 1,119 RBI and a .912 OPS in 15 seasons.
He had the fifth-most home runs (319) over an 11-year span (1964-74) behind four Hall of Famers: Hank Aaron (391), Harmon Killebrew (336), Willie Stargell (335) and Willie McCovey (327). His .940 OPS during that time was second only to Aaron's .941.
So what’s keeping him out of Cooperstown? Allen was known for being difficult while he was in Philadelphia, but at least one former teammate, Hall of Fame third baseman Mike Schmidt, believes his reputation was undeserved.
Speaking at Allen’s jersey retirement, Schmidt described his mentor as “a sensitive Black man who refused to be treated as a second-class citizen.” The Phillies were the last National League team to integrate in 1957, and Allen was the team’s first Black star.
"He played in front of home fans that were products of that racist era [with] racist teammates and different rules for whites and Blacks. Fans threw stuff at him and thus Dick wore a batting helmet throughout the whole game. They yelled degrading racial slurs. They dumped trash in his front yard at his home. In general, he was tormented and it came from all directions. And Dick rebelled."
Allen would get into clubhouse fights and show up late to the ballpark. Sometimes he’d even write the fans messages on the infield dirt. Once it was the word “Boo.” Another time it was “OCT 2,” foreshadowing his final game as a Phillie.
Theatrics aside, Allen has been painfully close to getting in the Hall recently. In 2021, MLB’s Golden Days Era Committee (of which Schmidt is a member) failed to nominate Allen after he fell one vote short. He came up one vote short in 2014 as well.
The Golden Days Era Committee won’t meet again until 2026. Hopefully the third time will be the charm. Until then, enjoy the bobblehead.
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