Dick Allen, who should be in baseball's Hall of Fame, dies at 78

Dick Allen

Dick Allen, one of four players to win an American League MVP award in a White Sox uniform, died Monday at age 78.

The right-handed-hitting slugger played in the majors from 1963 to 1977, mostly with the Philadelphia Phillies. He played three seasons with the White Sox from 1972 to 1974, and his first year on the South Side was the best of his career.

Allen won the 1972 American League MVP award, batting .308/.420/.603 with 37 home runs, 113 RBIs and a ridiculous 199 OPS+. He led the league in home runs, RBIs, walks (99), on-base percentage, slugging percentage, OPS and OPS+ in what was without a doubt one of the best single seasons ever posted by a White Sox player.

In 1974, Allen's last year with the Sox, he again led the AL in home runs with 32. All total, Allen batted .307/.398/.589 with 85 home runs and 242 RBIs in three years on the South Side.

We mourn the loss of Allen, while also pointing out that this man was very clearly a Hall of Fame player. He should be in Cooperstown, but isn't, and while he still might get there one day, it's unfortunate that he won't be around to receive that honor.

Allen was a seven-time All-Star, who won the National League Rookie of the Year award with the Phillies in 1964. He finished in the top 10 of the MVP voting three times in his career, and during his 11-year peak from 1964 to 1974, he led the league in offensive categories 19 times.

During those 11 years, his offensive WAR was 68.5, better than any other player of that time. That's no small statement, because Allen's contemporaries included Hank Aaron (63.9), Frank Robinson (59.0), Carl Yastrzemski (56.3), Joe Morgan (55.4) and Pete Rose (52.4).

Allen's OPS+ of 165 was also best during that 11-year peak, meaning he was 65% above league average for players at his position.

During that same time period, Allen ranked fourth in baseball in runs created and on-base percentage, fifth in home runs (with 319), sixth in WAR, seventh in RBIs, ninth in walks, 11th in batting average and 12th in doubles. 

Allen probably isn't in the Hall because he wasn't a good defensive player, and he wasn't well-liked by writers. To which I ask, who cares? Allen had a period of dominance that lasted more than 10 years, during which he was one of the best hitters in the game by any measure. That, to me, makes him a Hall of Famer.

In 2014, Allen fell one vote short of being elected to the Hall by baseball's Golden Era Committee. The committee was to meet and vote again this winter, but that meeting was canceled because of the COVID-19 pandemic. (You mean to tell me they couldn't have met on Zoom like everybody else does these days?)

There was a chance Allen could have gotten the call this year, had that meeting happened. Alas, it wasn't meant to be. It's a shame. 

A Hall of Fame shout-out to Yaz

If you've ever been to Cooperstown, N.Y., perhaps you're aware that Yastrzemski Sports is located on Main Street, one block away from the National Baseball Hall of Fame.

For years in Chicago, we joked about Ken "Hawk" Harrelson's frequent references to Carl Yastrzemski, or YAZ!, on White Sox TV broadcasts.

I could retire if I had a dollar for every time Harrelson reminded us that Yaz was "the American League's last Triple Crown winner." That occurred in 1967, in case you weren't aware.

Then Miguel Cabrera had to go and win the Triple Crown in the American League in 2012, sending Yaz's accomplishment to the background and spoiling the joke.

In any case, any reference to Yaz is enjoyable for me, so I had to take a few pictures when I saw his name attached to what is essentially a baseball card shop.

Here's the picture of Yaz that hangs on the window:

Besides the numerous baseball cards, the shop is filled with baseballs signed by all sorts of players, including quite a few Hall of Famers. There are a few other rare finds, too, and I had to laugh at this one:

After all, who doesn't want a nice, Albert Belle White Sox pennant? For the record, no, I did not buy it.

Myth-busting: Single-team career stars are *not* becoming more rare

You know who played 3,308 career games all with the Boston Red Sox?

YAZ!

Indeed, Ken "Hawk" Harrelson's oft-mentioned former teammate, Carl Yastrzemski, tops a list of 36 players in major league history who have played at least 2,000 career games all with the same team.

If you've watched ESPN or MLB Network at any point during the last two months, you are no doubt aware that longtime New York Yankees shortstop Derek Jeter is retiring at the end of the season. Jeter is among those 36 players, having played each of his 2,610 career games (entering Thursday) in a Yankee uniform.

On a recent MLB Network broadcast, I heard one of the commentators note that Jeter has spent his entire career in New York. They added that in this era of free agency, "you just don't see that too often anymore." That's conventional wisdom. Heck, I think I've probably said things like that myself.

But every now and then I like to research the facts behind the conventional wisdom, just to see if they are accurate. In this case, they are not.

Of the 36 players on that list, 23 are players who have played in my lifetime. For the record, I was born in 1976.

So, that means between the years of 1901 and 1976, a span of 75 years, there were only 13 players who played 2,000 games or more all with the same team. In the 38 years since 1976, 23 players have played 2,000 or more games all with the same team

Contrary to conventional wisdom, it's actually more common nowadays for a player to have a long career with the same team.

I won't bore you by listing all the players on the list, but among the 36 are some star players I recall watching during my 1980s childhood: Tony Gwynn, George Brett, Robin Yount, Mike Schmidt, Cal Ripken.

Others, like Jeter, are names familiar to fans who have followed baseball over the last 10 or 15 years: Barry Larkin, Craig Biggio, Edgar Martinez, Chipper Jones, Jeff Bagwell, Todd Helton.

Don't get me wrong: Given the sheer volume of players who make it to the major leagues, it is still uncommon for a guy to spend a career that spans more than a decade in the same city. At some point, most guys get traded, or leave their original franchise via free agency. But the conventional wisdom that says single-team career stars like Jeter are becoming more and more rare is just plain wrong.

In fact, it wouldn't surprise me if this list continues to grow over the next decade. You can find examples of players who are candidates to join the list. Boston second baseman Dustin Pedroia has played 1,025 career games (entering Thursday). He is under contract with the Red Sox until 2021, when he will be 38 years old. How about Evan Longoria? He's played 807 career games (entering Thursday) and is under contract with the Tampa Bay Rays through 2023. There's two possibilities right there. I'm sure there are others.

You see, this old-school lament that "players just don't stay in the same place anymore" is not quite right. They didn't stay in the same place all that often back in the old days either. If I ever try to tell you otherwise, remind me I'm wrong.