RIP to the Phillies legend:

In August, the Phillies decided to retire Allen’s #15, honoring him in a ceremony that took place one month later, on September 3rd, to commemorate the 57th anniversary of his debut with the team. It was a small ceremony that did not feature fans due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but the organization put together a nice tribute with Dick and family in attendance.

As for the Hall of Fame, he might get in posthumously, which would be bittersweet. Allen had a crack at the HOF in 2014, but fell one vote short. He’ll get another shot via the Veterans committee, which had to delay voting until next year because of COVID. But Allen pretty clearly deserves enshrinement. He earned seven All-Star selections, was the 1972 MVP, the 1964 NL Rookie of the Year, and a two-time AL home run leader. Allen played 15 MLB seasons and finished with a career .912 OPS, 351 home runs, 1,119 runs batted in, and 1,848 hits.

He was a fan favorite back then, and if you have a dad or an uncle or grandfather who watched the Phillies in this time period, he was one of their favorite players to watch. Great hitter, great player, a competitor in every sense of the word.

RIP Dick Allen. Maybe we’ll get to see him in the Hall one of these days, but he should been alive for the ceremony.


Edit –

Here’s a statement from the Phillies:

And here’s the number retirement from just three months ago:

https://youtu.be/rYfA9INXqqQ