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Let’s Get Dick Allen Into the Hall of Fame!
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“Dick Allen hits the ball harder than any player I’ve ever seen!” –Willie Mays
Now that’s quite a quote! In a recent post about the Phillies’ historic collapse in 1964, some of our readers commented that Dick Allen has been overlooked for the Hall of Fame. I’ve heard this before, so I decided to do a little research into his career. After doing so, I would certainly have to concur: Dick Allen belongs in the Hall.
I also found that many historians regard him as the best player not yet in. Typical is Wall Street Journal sports columnist Allen Barra who wrote, “A growing body of baseball historians think that Dick Allen is the best player eligible for the Hall of Fame.” One thing I learned for sure: He’s a better hitter and player than a good percentage of those already enshrined in the Hall.
Dick Allen’s Career Statistics:
Dick Allen played 15 seasons (1963-’77) in the majors with the Phillies (1963-’69, 1975-’76), Cardinals (1970), White Sox (1972-’74), and the Athletics (1977). Over his career, he hit .292, with 351 home runs, 1119 RBIs, a .534 slugging percentage, and .378 on-base percentage. Allen had an 11-year peak that was truly staggering, putting up a .299/.386/.554 from 1964 through 1974. That’s a slash line that would be impressive in the high-scoring 1930s, but Allen did it in the heart of the “Pitchers’ Era” (think Koufax, Gibson, Drysdale, Jenkins) in the 1960s.
Allen was a seven-time All-Star, National League Rookie of the Year (1964), American League MVP (1972), two-time American League home run leader (1972, 1974), and one-time American League RBI leader (1972). He led the National League in slugging percentage once and the American League twice. For many years he held the highest slugging percentage among players not in the Hall. Allen hit over 30 home runs six times.
His rookie year of 1964 ranks among the greatest rookie seasons ever. He led the league in runs (125), triples (13), extra-base hits (80) and total bases (352); and finished in the top five in batting average (.318), slugging average (.557), hits (201), and doubles (38). Plus he hit 29 home runs, 91 RBIs, and a .382 On-base percentage.
When the Phillies suffered their collapse in 1964 by losing ten straight games to blow a six and a half game lead with twelve to play, Allen hit .438 with five doubles, two triples, three home runs and 11 RBI in those last 12 games.
Allen’s OPS+ Tells the Story!
Many historians point out that Dick Allen began his career during the mid-1960s, a period so dominated by pitchers that it’s sometimes called the “second dead ball era.” Allen also played much of his career in pitcher-friendly parks like Busch Memorial Stadium, Dodger Stadium, and Comiskey Park. That’s why his offensive numbers and his 156 OPS+ (Adjusted On-base Plus Slugging) are so impressive. This valuable sabermetric stat adjusts a player’s OPS for the era and parks in which he played. Of the players whose careers intersected with Dick Allen, only Mickey Mantle’s lifetime OPS+ of 172 topped Allen’s lifetime 156 (100 is the major leaguer average).
In addition, his career 156 OPS+ is the second highest of any retired player not in the Hall of Fame, and currently ranks Allen twenty-fourth all-time. What’s even more impressive, he ranks sixth all-time among right-handed hitters, tied with Frank Thomas, and ahead of Willie Mays (155), Hank Aaron (155), Joe DiMaggio (155), Mel Ott (155), and Frank Robinson (154). Dick Allen, at-bat for at-bat, is one of the top twenty-five hitters in baseball history. To me, that stat alone qualifies him for the Hall of Fame.
One Of The Most Powerful Sluggers Ever!
Not only did Dick Allen put up great offensive numbers, his massive strength and body torque produced prodigious blasts off his bat. Baseball historian Bill Jenkinson ranks him with Foxx and Mantle – and just a notch below Babe Ruth – as the four top long-distance sluggers in baseball history. Twice Allen cleared Connie Mack Stadium’s 65-foot-high right center field scoreboard: a feat considered virtually impossible for a right-handed hitter. One was a massive blow estimated at 529 feet.
Controversial? His Teammates Loved Him!
Controversy always seemed to find Dick Allen, and perhaps that’s why he’s not yet been elected to the Hall. Bill James rated Dick Allen as the second-most controversial player in baseball history, behind only Rogers Hornsby. But that harsh judgment doesn’t seem to square with comments by those who played with him. Here’s some quotes from Dick Allen’s contemporaries:
“Dick Allen was ahead of his time. He played the game in the most conservative era in baseball history. It was a time of change and protest in the country. His way of doing things would go unnoticed today. If I had been manager of the Phillies, I would have found a way to make Dick Allen comfortable. When Dick Allen was comfortable, balls left the park” -Willie Stargell
“Allen was not a “clubhouse lawyer” who harmed team chemistry. Dick was the leader of our team, the captain, the manager on the field. He took care of the young kids, took them under his wing. And he played every game as if it was his last day on earth” –Chuck Tanner
“Dick’s behavior never had a negative effect on the team. His teammates always liked him. I’d take him in a minute.” -Gene Mauch
“I’ve been around the game a long time, and he’s the greatest player I’ve ever seen play in my life. He had the most amazing season in 1972 I’ve ever seen. He’s the smartest baseball man I’ve ever been around in my life. He taught me how to pitch from a hitter’s prospective, and taught me how to play the game right. There’s no telling the numbers this guy could have put up if all he worried about was stats. The guy belongs in the Hall of Fame.” Hall-of-Famer Rich Gossage
“I actually thought that Dick was better than his stats. Every time we needed a clutch hit, he got it. He got along great with his teammates and he was very knowledgeable about the game. He was the ultimate team guy.” -Teammate Stan Bahnsen
“Dick Allen was my mentor. The baseball writers used to claim that Dick would divide the clubhouse along racial lines. That was a lie. The truth is that Dick never divided any clubhouse.” –Mike Schmidt
A few years ago, I interviewed Dick Allen’s long-time friend, Mark Carfagno. I asked him what kind of man Dick Allen was. Here’s how Mark responded:
Dick Allen may be the most misunderstood person I’ve ever met. He really was a wonderful human being and a great father. I’ll also add that he was a great athlete who had over one hundred Division One basketball scholarship offers. I’ve said this before: Dick Allen was an “athletic freak,” like Bo Jackson, Allen Iverson, Wilt Chamberlain. Freaks do special things. One thing that Allen did that only Babe Ruth could do was hit the ball over 500 feet at least 20 times.
Anytime his name is brought up, the first words out of people’s mouths are, “I was there when he hit it over the Coke Sign.” Or, “I saw him hit one over the roof.” Or, “I saw him hit one over the 75-foot high scoreboard.” When he passed away his tremendous power was always mentioned. To me that means something. It should be part of his Hall of Fame resume.
Also what Allen went through in Arkansas and Philadelphia should be taken into consideration [for the Hall of Fame]. How could he play under those conditions and play at an optimum or Hall of Fame level? Politics has kept Dick Allen out of the Hall of Fame for years…His career 156 OPS+ ALONE should get him into the Hall of Fame…All of his Hall of Fame peers are nowhere to be found on that list. OPS+ is believed to be the fairest stat to judge a player’s HOF case because it factors in the era played in, ballparks and pitchers, etc. It’s one of the biggest injustices in all of Sports that fact that Dick Allen is NOT in the hall of Fame.
All-in-all, it sounds to me like Dick Allen belongs in the Hall of Fame. What do you think?
Gary Livacari
Photo Credits:Most photos from http://dickallen15.com/media/galleries/#prettyPhoto; Others from Google search
Information: Excerpts edited from the Dick Allen Wikipedia page; interview with Mark Carfagno
Statistics from Baseball-Reference, Dick Allen page
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I agree, Gary!
Richie or Dick.. let’s get him in!!
I don’t much like “whatabout-ism” in these kinds of discussions, but it’s valid in this case…. George Kell and Scott Rolen are HoFers. Whom would you rather have in your lineup? Kell, Rolen, or Allen? Statistically and with an “eye test”, Allen was a great player. I was lucky enough to see him in his good years with the White Sox, and he carried that generally mediocre team in ’72 (Wilbur Wood started 49 games!) into pennant contention vs. the A’s for most of that season, finishing 6 games back.
I watched him closely as a 13 year old in ’64, Richie’s first season, and was amazed as a 21 year old in ’72 when ‘Dick’ Allen rejuvenated the White Sox. He belongs. Loads of current HOFer’s couldn’t shine his shoes. Let’s get him in.
After Dick Allen, put Pete Rose in next … even if they have to put an asterisk next to his name.
Agree…
I can’t believe that he isn’t already in! REALLY?!?!
Sure, Allen could pulverize a baseball and had HOF stats:
Average (per 162 games) 33 HR and 104 RBI throughout his 15-year career with a super 156 OPS plus.
The latter right there with Mays, Aaron, Musial, DiMaggio…but the writers didn’t like him. The word was he got a bum rap, but, like the Academy Awards sometimes, often the “objective” DNA with these folks is absent.
Yes, I’m with you, Allen and Rose have got to be there–asterisks and all !!
Great comments, Bill! Thanks!
Before everyone jumps on Dick Allen’s bandwagon please consider Dale Murphy, Ryan Howard, Carlos Delgado, Andrew Jones. Albert Belle, among others who outplayed Allen in stats and recognition. Twice Allen quit a team during the season; White Sox and Athletics. I am not quite sure that he is Hall material.
You raise good points, Kevin. But that’s why OPS+ is such an important stat. It’s hard to compare stats of players from different eras and from the different ball parks the guys played in. OPS+ does just that. It adjusts stats for era and park parks. Allen’s 156 OPS+ is very impressive, and adjusts his stats for the era of great pitchers (late ’60s and ’70s) and the pitcher-friendly parks in which he played. As I mentioned in the essay, of all the players whose careers intersected with Dick Allen’s, only Mickey Mantle’s OPS+ of 172 tops Allen’s 156. By contrast, here’s the OPS+ for the guys you mention, all of whom I agree are worthy of HOF consideration: Dale Murphy- 121, Ryan Howard- 125, Carlos Delgado- 138, Andrew Jones- 111, Albert Belle- 144.
Dick Allen’s 156 OPS+ is ahead of many great stars already in the Hall, as I also mentioned in the essay.
I do not like to argue with folks I consider respected friends but with all due respect I believe the OPS+ statistic is flawed (an argument for another time) and I think that is proven by the fact that Allen has better OPS+ stats than Joe DiMaggio, Mel Ott, Frank Robinson, Hank Aaron, and Willie Mays; players he couldn’t be mentioned in the same breath with. Allen never played on a pennant winner, was a poor teammate, and a suspect fielder. There are many others more worthy. Just my opinion of course.
Good points, Kevin. No statistic is perfect. But as Gary pointed out, Allen was 56% better than the average player during the years he played re the OPS+ stat. It’s a pretty good indication of his batting prowess.
No, not in the same class as Joe, Mel, Frank, Hank and Willie for various reasons, not the least of which was his fielding.
Dick never played on a pennant winner but had a supersonic rookie year on a team that should have won the pennant in 1964. Gene Mauch single handedly lost the flag with his brutal pitching staff butchery. Bunning and Short until their arms fell off in the Phillies’ dugout.
As far as “poor teammate” that’s a matter of opinion. In the essay, many are quoted as saying Allen was a great teammate. In baseball and in life in general, you’re always going to hurt some people and disappoint others.
To continue this friendly discussion: Agreed Allen carried 1964 Phillies despite Mauch panic attack.
OPS+ does not recognize RBI, Stolen bases, runs. Important criteria in rating baseball players. I like (BB+Runs) X .50 +TB+RBI+SB= with any result above 6,000 for corner infielders, outfielders, and DH’S HOF material. While when and in which ball parks a player played in is important I believe who the players teammates were actually has a greater affect on player statistics; Ruth with Gehrig, Aaron with Mathews, Maris with Mantle, Mantle with Berra, certainly had a statistical benefit. But I have no idea how to statistically rate that. As I recall Allen had no such prolific teammate on his teams which could be an argument for him.
Stargell, Frank and Brooks Robinson, Billy Williams, Ron Santo, Joe Morgan, and Joe Torre, all HOF’s played in Allen’s time and although they do not have OPS+ stat as good as Allen’s I doubt Allen would have been traded for them in their prime.
Rolen belongs on HOF. Kell does not.
Allen quit the White Sox and the Athletics during the season, I don’t consider that a “good teammate.”
A petition for Rusty Staub, who played at the same time as Allen, had much better stats, and helped win Pennants, would be nice.
Joe Torre had remarkably similar stats as Allen and hopefully is only in the HOF due to his playing AND managerial career.
OOPS! Forgot Lou Brock who also played in Allen’s time.
Kevin,
You’re a great fan who adds a lot to these pages. But Staub and Torre in the stat department compared to Allen?
Allen (per 162 games) 33 HR 104 RBI. Staub 16/80. Torre 18/87. Joe had the monster year in ’71 and Rusty led the league in doubles once. (I loved Staub with the Mets. He was heroic in ’73 playing with a significant injury and leading the team to an unlikely pennant).
Allen buries them in bold type-plus ROY & MVP honors. And “not for nuthin” Mays said nobody hit the ball as far as Dick Allen. Willie Stargell said as much. Allen was right there with Ruth, Mantle and Bo Jackson in raw ability to crush a baseball. That’s part of the picture.
Yes, leaving two teams before season’s end casts aspersions but Allen mentored young players and was beloved by many teammates. A feud with the fading Ron Santo precipitated one premature departure.
Dick (Richie) was not slick with the glove and was moved around quite a bit. Some claimed he could not get in good fielding groove because of that (Ha, Ha).
We should also consider a petition to reconsider Bill Maz for the Hall. A good fielding .260 hitter with a famous homerun.
Bill,
I would definitely support Maz recall. Torre vs Allen: Torre 3 time all star at 3 different positions, Allen two positions, Torre 18 seasons, Allen 15, Both had one MVP, Allen ROY, Torre runner-up, Torre 9 time AS, Allen 7 time AS, Torre BA .297, Allen, .292, SB 23 to 133, TB 3560 to 3379, RBI 1185 to 1119, Runs 996 to 1099, BB 779 to 894, HITS 2342 to 1848. Points to Torre for longevity. Stats very similar. As I said Torre only gets in Hall when you also consider his managerial career, does not get in on stats alone.
Hitting a ball hard and far is minor criteria for Hall. If so Rudy York, Ted Klu, Dave Kingman, Bobby Bonds, Adam Dunn, Schwaber would be in Hall. I recognize you as a superb baseball guru but I still can’t support Allen. The HOF already has too many in it based solely on popularity. Thanks for a great conversation.
Kevin,
We at BHCA are now going to petition for three debates between you and me–as an alternative to the presidential debates in the fall (should there be any).
The illustrious Gary Livacari will set it up, and act as moderator.
In the meantime, I’ll have my people talk to your people.
Enjoy the day!
Best,
Bill
I think I’d enjoy this debate more than the other!
This Dick Allen post has generated over 1.5K likes on my Facebook page and over 300 comments:
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Congratulations!!!! A four baseball bat congrats.
Thanks Kevin!