Dick Allen dies at 78; seven-time MLB All-Star, 1972 AL MVP dealt with hatred in career
Dick Allen’s family and friends, fearing he would not live long enough to see his election into Baseball’s Hall of Fame, were left heartbroken Monday when Allen died at the age of 78.
If not for COVID-19, the Golden Era Committee would have held their election this past Sunday for the Hall of Fame, and with Allen falling short by just one vote in 2014, it seemed almost inevitable he would be elected.
The vote instead was delayed a year, leaving his supporters furious, and now he is gone one year too soon.
“The Phillies are heartbroken over the passing today of our dear friend and co-worker, Dick Allen,’’ the Phillies said in a statement. “Dick will be remembered as not just one of the greatest and most popular players in our franchise’s history, but also as a courageous warrior who had to overcome far too many obstacles to reach the level he did.
“Dick’s iconic status will resonate for generations of baseball fans to come as one of the all-time greats to play America’s Pastime."
A week ago, Philadelphia Phillies Hall of Famer Mike Schmidt called for Allen's Hall of Fame election, saying he was the one who mentored one of the greatest eras in Phillies’ history with Schmidt, Larry Bowa, Greg Luzinski, Garry Maddox and Bob Boone.
“If you go back in time and analyze Dick’s career and look at his career by applying the modern-day analytics, his numbers are far and above a lot of the guys who are in the Hall of Fame,” Schmidt told the Philadelphia Inquirer. "That’s always one way to look at it: ‘Well, if he’s in the Hall of Fame, then he deserves to be in the Hall of Fame.’ You’ll go nuts looking at things that way. You’ll also ruffle feathers if you do. But for me, it’s the simplest way to look at it.”
If not for the blatant racism during his career, Allen likely would have already been in the Hall of Fame. Maybe if he ignored all of the hatred, he would have been elected long ago. Yet, as he told Paste BN Sports six years ago, he wasn’t changing for anyone.
“I wouldn’t change a thing in my life,’’ Allen said. “What I’ve done, I’m pretty happy with it. I probably could have handled things differently, but I’m glad I didn’t.
“I was just being me. People weren’t happy with me just being me. That’s why I got death threats my whole life, all of the hate mail and all of those boos.’’
Allen was the first prominent Black player in Phillies franchise history and still is considered perhaps the most controversial athlete in Philadelphia sports history.
“I might have been the modern-day Jackie Robinson,’’ Allen says. “Everything he went through, I went through, only I did it in modern times.
“Jackie probably would have handled things differently. I couldn’t do that. God didn’t give me the gift of words.’’
Allen was a seven-time All-Star, 1964 NL Rookie of the Year and 1972 AL MVP winner, batting .292 with 351 homers and 1,119 RBI, including a .534 slugging percentage and .378 on-base percentage. He hit at least 20 homers in 10 seasons, including six seasons of at least 30 homers.
During a 10-year stretch from 1964-74, baseball historians believe he was the best player in the game. If you examine the sabermetric stats at OPS-plus (on-base plus slugging percentage, adjusted for a player’s home ballpark), he ranks ahead of 11 Hall of Fame inductees who played during the same time.
“I’ve been around the game a long time,’’ Hall of Fame pitcher Goose Gossage told Paste BN Sports, “and he’s the greatest player I’ve ever seen play in my life. He had the most amazing season [1972] I’ve ever seen. He’s the smartest baseball man I’ve ever been around in my life.’’
Allen’s friends - from producer Mike Tollin, who was making a documentary on Allen’s life, to Mark “Frog’’ Carfagno, a former member of the Phillies’ grounds crew - will tell you he was simply misunderstood.
Carfagno, who has been vocal in his disdain for the Hall of Fame delaying the vote, told Paste BN Sports: “The fact that he’s not in the Hall of Fame is a slap in the face to anyone who knows anything about baseball. Dick Allen is the most misunderstood player, and person, I’ve met in my life. I’ll argue until my teeth turn blue that this man belongs in the Hall of Fame.
“You’re talking about a guy who played in Philadelphia during those times. I saw the way he was abused. They called him every name in the book. Every racial epithet. I couldn’t believe he could play with all of that pressure on him.
“He would come in and hang out with us on the grounds crew after games. We understood him. Nobody else did.’’
Allen, who had been in ill health, was with his family and closest friends this past summer when the Phillies retired his uniform number 15.
“Dick Allen over a 10-year period could very easily have been the best player in the National League,” Schmidt told reporters that day. “You had [Willie] Mays and [Hank] Aaron and if you compare his career lines to similar players of his era, most all are Hall of Famers. But you scratch your head and you say, ‘Something must be wrong here.’’’
Now, Allen is gone, just three months ago after the Hall of Fame postponed its vote, which is what Carfagno feared when all along.
“It’s cruel. It’s wrong. It’s age discrimination,’’ Carfagno told the Philadelphia Inquirer. "It’s a heartless decision for making these men wait who may not be with us.”
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