WHY I THINK JEFF KENT SHOULD BE IN COOPERSTOWN

WHY I THINK JEFF KENT SHOULD BE IN COOPERSTOWN 

By- Damien 

Second base is not considered a power position. Second basemen tend to be smaller, nimbler guys, not hulking power hitters. At bat they are usually slap hitters. Jeff Kent went against the narrative and became an elite power hitter in his prime, the 2000 NL MVP, and the all time leader in home runs and RBI’s by a second baseman. Because of players like Kent, more and more second basemen are trying to hit for power and finding success. 

Jeffrey Franklin Kent was born on March 7, 1968, in Bellflower, California, a suburb of Los Angeles. At first he wasn’t into baseball (he preferred motocross), but he eventually started playing and became a stud. He was a star shortstop in high school, but ran into some problems in his senior year. Although he had established himself as a power hitter, he was kicked off the team for an “attitude problem.” He didn’t earn any baseball scholarships, and was accepted by the University of California at Berkeley for academics. As a freshman at UCB, he was offered a spot on the baseball team as a walk-on, and he ended up setting the school record with 25 doubles, setting the stage for a successful college career. He was drafted by the Blue Jays in the 20th round of the 1989 amateur draft and was assigned to St. Catharines in the New York-Pennsylvania League. In his first season as a pro, Kent led the league in home runs. Kent powered through the farms for the next two seasons and made the Jays in 1992. He played only 65 games for Toronto before he was traded to the Mets. He finished the 1992 season with 11 home runs in 305 at bats. He continued to improve his power, averaging about 20 homers a season for the next few years, and was picked up by the Cleveland Indians in midseason 1996 for the pennant drive. Kent found stability with the Giants in 1997, and from there his career started to take off. 

Kent batted .250 with 29 homers and 121 RBI’s in 1997. He followed up with an even better season in 1998, hitting .297 - 31 - 128. He made his first all-star team in 1999 and won the NL MVP Award in 2000 when he batted .334 with 33 home runs and 125 RBI’s, beating out the runner up, teammate Barry Bonds, by a stunning 113 points. Despite his success, however, Kent was not popular. He built up a reputation for being arrogant. “It’s not arrogant,” Kent once said, “it’s confident.” Confident or not, the press didn’t like him, although he was establishing himself as a perennial MVP candidate. In 2002, 34 year old Kent batted .313 and hit a career high 37 home runs, but all was not well. On June 25, Kent and Barry Bonds had a brawl in the dugout. The two never got along, and this incident only added fuel to the fire. Although Kent won a Silver Slugger and helped the Giants win the pennant, he was traded to the Astros after the season. Kent missed out on 100 RBI’s for the first time in seven years in 2003 (he had 93), but his acquisition forced four time Gold Glover Craig Biggio to the outfield. 

Now those who reject Kent’s Hall of Fame case generally say that Kent was a bad fielder (because they admittedly don’t have anything against his hitting). Really? Biggio had been the Astros’ regular second baseman since 1992, and was coming off a fine defensive season in 2002, posting a fielding percentage of .988 (seven points above the league average). When Kent came along, Biggio was the one to move. Kent was coming off a season in which he’d led NL second basemen in double plays, and he sure wasn’t gonna move. He remained Houston’s second baseman until he was granted free agency a year later. After that, Biggio became the second baseman again for the rest of his career. If Kent was really such a bad fielder, then how was he able to beat out Biggio for the Astros’ second base job? 

After he left the Astros, Kent went over to the Dodgers, winning another Silver Slugger in 2005 with 29 homers and 105 RBI’s. He enjoyed three more quality seasons after that, and retired after hitting .280 in 2008 at the age of 40. 

Kent fares well compared with the second basemen in Cooperstown. Out of his 377 career home runs, he hit 351 when he was playing second base, the most in MLB history and 74 more than Hall of Famer Ryne Sandberg, who ranks second. His other counting stats are also quite impressive: 1,320 runs scored, 2,461 hits, 560 doubles, 1,518 RBI's. His slash line was .290/.356/.500, making him one of only two second basemen (min. 7,000 PA) with a slugging percentage of at least .500. The other? Rogers Hornsby. Kent had eight seasons with over 100 RBI’s, the most of any second baseman (Hornsby had five). However, due to his unpopularity, he was passed up ten times by the BBWAA. After he was aged off the 2023 ballot, Kent said that the voting was “a head scratching embarrassment.” I can’t help but agree. The BBWAA voting has been very inconsistent over the years, and made a big mistake in omitting Kent. His next opportunity will come when the Contemporary Game Era Committee votes in 2026. One can only hope that the Committee will vote him in. 

LIFETIME STATISTICS 

Games career: 2,298 season high: 159 in 2000 and 2001 

At Bats career: 8,498 season high: 623 in 2002 

Hits career: 2,461 season high: 196 in 2000 

Doubles career: 560 season high: 49 in 2001 

Triples career: 47 season high: 8 in 2004 

Home Runs career: 377 season high: 37 in 2002 

Runs career: 1,320 season high: 114 in 2000 

Runs Batted In career: 1,518 season high: 128 in 1998 

Stolen Bases career: 94 season high: 13 in 1999 

Walks career: 801 season high: 90 in 2000 

Strikeouts career: 1,522 season high: 133 in 1997 

Batting Average career: .290 season high: .334 in 2000 

On Base Percentage career: .356 season high: .424 in 2000 

Slugging Percentage career: .500 season high: .596 in 2000 

Total Bases career: 4,246 season high: 352 in 2002 

Sacrifice Hits career: 10 season high: 6 in 1993 

Fielding Percentage career: .978 season high: .989 in 2004 

Double Plays career: 1,362 season high: 120 in 2002 led NL 2B: 113 in 2002*

Putouts career: 4,816 season high: 462 in 2001** 

Assists career: 5,918 season high: 430 in 2005 led NL 2B: 390 in 2001 

*Kent turned seven double plays at first base in 2002, but led NL second basemen with 113 

**Kent made 193 putouts at first base in 2001; his single season high as a second baseman is 325 in 1997 

DID YOU KNOW? 

-finished sixth in the NL MVP Award voting in 2002, eighth in 1997, ninth in 1998, 13th in 2004, 19th in 2005, and 26th in 1999 

-won three NL Player of the Month awards and three NL Player of the Week awards 

-hit 2-for-8 with two runs scored in five all-star games (four starts) 

-led the NL in sacrifice flies in 1998 (10) and 2001 (13) and ranks 26th on the all time list with 103 

-led the NL in extra-base hits in 2002 (81) and ranks 43rd on the all time list with 984 

-his 49 doubles in 2001 set a Giants franchise record which still stands 

-slashed .276/.340/.500 with nine home runs and 23 RBI’s in 49 career postseason games 

-batted .276 with three home runs and seven RBI’s in his only World Series, 2002 

-hit 8-for-13 (.615) with a homer in the 2006 NLDS 

-went 5-for-5 and hit for the cycle on May 3, 1999 

-went 5-for-5 with two doubles and a home run on June 12, 1999, barely missing his second cycle of the season 

-went 1-for-2 with a double on his MLB debut 

-went 1-for-2 in his final MLB game  

-homered in his first at bat as a Houston Astro 

-turned a triple play on August 19, 2004 

-ranks 48th in career assists at any position 

-among MLB second basemen, ranks 13th in career games, 14th in double plays, 20th in putouts, and 17th in assists 

-also played 116 games at first base, 158 at third base, three at shortstop, seven as a DH, 42 as a pinch hitter, and four as a pinch runner

2023 Contemporary Hall of Fame Ballot Results

The results for the 2023 Contemporary Hall of Fame Ballot are in. 

Fred McGriff - 16 of 16 ballots (1.000) 

Don Mattingly - 8 votes (.500) 

Curt Schilling - 7 votes (.438) 

Dale Murphy - 6 votes (.375) 

Belle, Bonds, Palmeiro, Clemens - fewer than 4 votes each 

In my opinion, Fred McGriff was probably the best player outside of the Hall of Fame until yesterday. McGriff had eight seasons with over 100 RBI's (1,550 career) and ten 30 homer seasons (493 career). 

Once again, Curt Schilling was passed over in the voting. This is no surprise, considering that he asked to be removed from his last BBWAA ballot, and doesn't want to be honored by an establishment as political and nasty as the Hall of Fame. Schilling is obviously one of the greatest pitchers who ever lived, and I think he can live with that. 

The bottom four on the list demonstrate one obvious truth - if you can't play it straight, you won't make the Hall of Fame. This is a shame for Bonds and Clemens, who could have been Hall of Famers if they'd never taken the stuff. As "Crime Dog" Fred McGriff might say, crime doesn't pay! 

As for the other two players on this list, Mattingly and Murphy, I don't really care if they make it or not. They were both very good players, and I wrote posts about them for this blog, but they're not sure-fire Hall of Famers. They may make it sometime in the future on account of their popularity. 

The First Inevitable Ceremony

Earlier this month, the Veterans' Committee elected six new Hall of Famers, five of whom I advocated for previously on this blog. They are - 

Tony Oliva 

Jim Kaat 

Minnie Minoso 

Gil Hodges 

Buck O'Neil 

Bud Fowler 

I advocated for the first five. 

Oliva was an outfielder from 1962 through 1976 for the Twins who won three Batting Titles and had a career batting average of .304. 

Kaat pitched from 1959 through 1983, primarily with the Twins and White Sox, and won 283 games. He is also a famous broadcaster. 

Minoso was an outfielder from 1949 through 1964 in the Majors, with three years in the Negro Leagues from 1946-1948 and two publicity stunts in 1976 and 1980. He batted .299 lifetime and won three Gold Glove awards. 

One of the most debated Hall of Fame candidates ever, Hodges played first base and caught from 1943 through 1963, mostly for the Brooklyn "Boys of Summer", and finished with 370 home runs and three Gold Gloves. He also managed the 1969 Miracle Mets. 

Buck O'Neil and Bud Fowler made it as pioneers of the Negro Leagues. 

I knew that I would eventually have to write this post, but a few things surprised me. (1), six men were inducted at once. This is one of the highest totals in any one year in history. (2), I never thought that I'd write this post so soon. I thought that it was at least a few years away. 

WHY I THINK JIM KAAT SHOULD BE IN COOPERSTOWN

WHY I THINK JIM KAAT SHOULD BE IN COOPERSTOWN 

By- Damien 

Jim Kaat pitched from 1959 through 1983, a total of 25 years, and was effective all the way to the end. He could have been the steadiest pitcher of all time, winning 10 or more games for 15 straight years and throwing over 200 innings in fourteen different seasons. Kaat was more than just a consistently good pitcher; he was one of the best pitchers in baseball in the 1960’s and early 1970’s. He was also of enormous value for his workload (eleven seasons with 34 or more starts), impeccable control (2.2 walks per nine innings), fielding (16 Gold Gloves), hitting (232 hits including 16 homers), and durability (he always pitched without sleeves, regardless of the weather). Jim Kaat started his career with the Twins in 1959, pitching five innings and going 0-2. He worked 50 innings in 1960 and joined the rotation in 1961. He won 18 games in 1962 and 17 in 1964. He went 18-11 with a 2.83 ERA in 42 starts for the pennant winning Twins of 1965 and beat Sandy Koufax in Game 2 of the World Series. In 1966, Kaat again led the Majors in starts, won 25 games, and struck out 200 batters for the first time. Kaat continued to be a consistent hurler for the next decade, posting a 2.94 ERA in 1968 and a 2.02 in 1972, but appeared finished in 1973 when, at the age of 34, he was rocked for a 4.37 mark. Kaat came back to win 20 games in each of the next two seasons for the Chicago White Sox. He won a dozen games in 1976, his last year as a regular starter, and he slowly started to decline. He bounced from team to team as a reliever and an occasional starter, helping the Cardinals to the World Series Championship in 1982. He pitched his last game in 1983. Kaat is also a famous broadcaster, active since 1965 and the winner of many awards. Jim Kaat was an incredibly steady starter, a pitcher of 25 seasons (a record at the time of his retirement), the winner of 283 MLB games, and a player who was talented in all phases of the game. How many such players are there? Not many. He belongs in the Hall of Fame. 

LIFETIME STATISTICS 

Games Pitched career: 898 season high: 62 in 1982 

Starts career: 625 season high: 42 in 1965 led AL: 42 in 1965, 41 in 1966 

Complete Games career: 180 season high: 19 in 1966 led AL: 19 in 1966 

Shutouts career: 31 season high: 5 in 1962 led AL: 5 in 1962 

Games Finished career: 102 season high: 25 in 1980 

Wins career: 283 season high: 25 in 1966 led AL: 25 in 1966 

Losses career: 237 season high: 17 in 1961 

Winning Percentage career: .544 season high: .658 in 1966 

ERA career: 3.45 season low: 2.75 in 1966 

WHIP career: 1.259 season low: 1.070 in 1966 

Innings Pitched career: 4,530 ⅓ season high: 304 ⅔ in 1966 led AL: 304 ⅔ in 1966 

Strikeouts career: 2,461 season high: 211 in 1967 

Strikeouts Per Nine Innings career: 4.9 season high: 7.2 in 1967 

Walks career: 1,083 (116 intentional) season high: 82 in 1961 

Strikeouts Per Walk career: 2.27 season high: 5.02 in 1967 led AL: 3.73 in 1966 

Saves career: 17 season high: 4 in 1980 and 1981 

Fielding Percentage career: .947 season high: .984 in 1963 

Double Plays career: 65 season high: 8 in 1961 

Putouts career: 262 season high: 19 in 1961, 1963, and 1966 

Assists career: 744 season high: 72 in 1962 led AL P: 72 in 1962 

Caught Stealing Percentage career: .341 season high: .750 in 1975 

Pickoffs career: 24 season high: 3 in 1966, 1972, and 1974 

DID YOU KNOW? 

-nicknamed “Kitty Kaat” 

-finished fifth in the AL MVP Award voting in 1966, 20th in 1967, and 28th in 1975 

-finished fourth in the AL Cy Young Award voting in 1975 

-was the 1966 AL TSN (The Sporting News) Pitcher of the Year 

-won the most Gold Gloves in a Minnesota Twins uniform at any position (12) 

-was a three time all-star (in 1962, 1966, and 1975) 

-won two AL Player of the Week awards 

-pitched 1 ⅓ innings in his final MLB game without allowing an earned run 

-led the AL in batters faced (1,227) in 1966 

-allowed the fewest walks per nine innings in the AL in 1966 (1.6) and 1973 (1.7) 

-batted .375/.444/.500 in 1981 and .289/.304/.489 in 1972, and in 1970 was the last pitcher to receive an intentional walk 

-went 1-for-2 at the plate in the 1976 NLCS and drove in two runs in the 1965 World Series 

-among MLB pitchers, ranks 28th in career games pitched, 17th in starts, 31st in wins, 25th in innings, 44th in strikeouts, 25th in batters faced, and 34th in putouts 

-also played one game as a DH, 24 as a pinch hitter, and 85 as a pinch runner 

-was the oldest player in the AL in 1979 and in the NL in 1983 

-was inducted into the Minnesota Twins Hall of Fame in 2001 

-was the last player from the original Washington Senators to retire

WHY I THINK MINNIE MINOSO SHOULD BE IN COOPERSTOWN

WHY I THINK MINNIE MINOSO SHOULD BE IN COOPERSTOWN 

By- Damien 

Minnie Minoso was one of the players who successfully made the transition from the Negro Leagues to the recognized MLB. An outfielder and third baseman, Minoso was an excellent baserunner, a leader on the Go-Go White Sox, and when he reached base (at a .387 lifetime clip), the fans would often chant, “Go! Go! Go!” Minoso rewarded them by leading the AL in stolen bases three years in a row. Minnie Minoso started his career with the New York Cubans of the Negro National League II in 1946, clocking four homers but batting only .227 in 36 games. In 1947, Minoso found his stride as he batted .356 and .344 the next season. The Indians decided to give Minoso a job and played him in nine games in 1949. He spent 1950 in the minors and was traded to the White Sox after eight games in 1951. Minoso finished the season with a .326 batting average and led the AL in triples, stolen bases, and hit by pitch (as he was a notorious plate crowder). For the next decade Minoso was one of the best players in the Major Leagues, batting a composite .303 with three Gold Glove awards as a leftfielder. He led the AL in several different batting categories and always supplied a steady amount of runs, as he drove in 100 runs in four different seasons and scored over 100 four times. He was dealt back to the Indians for the 1958 season and played two more years for them before the White Sox got him back. Minoso made his 13th and final all-star team in 1960 and last played productively as a regular in 1961. On May 11, 1962, Minoso crashed into an outfield wall, an injury that fractured his skull and broke his wrist, and he finished the season with a .196 mark in 39 games. Minoso hung around until 1964, bouncing ineffectively from team to team, and was finally released by the White Sox on July 17, 1964. In 1976, the White Sox signed Minoso and played him in three games as a pinch hitter, and he became one of the oldest players ever to get a hit in the Majors (at least 50 years old; he was born on November 29 in either 1922, 1923, 1924, or 1925, and different sources use different dates). In 1980, the Sox went at it again, and used him twice as a pinch hitter. They were going to do it again in 1993, but it never happened. He played his last professional game in 2003 as a member of the St. Paul Saints in the Northern League. Minnie Minoso was a fine hitter, a great baserunner, and an exhilarating thrill to fans everywhere. He truly was one of the greatest players of all time and a worthy Hall of Fame candidate. 

LIFETIME STATISTICS 

Games career: 1,946 season high: 154 in 1960 led AL: 154 in 1960 

At Bats career: 7,048 season high: 591 in 1960 

Hits career: 2,110 season high: 184 in 1960 led AL: 184 in 1960 

Doubles career: 365 season high: 36 in 1957 led AL: 36 in 1957 

Triples career: 95 season high: 18 in 1954 led NN2: 6 in 1948 led AL: 14 in 1951, 18 in 1954, 11 in 1956 

Home Runs career: 195 season high: 24 in 1958 

Runs career: 1,225 season high: 119 in 1954 

Runs Batted In career: 1,093 season high: 116 in 1954 

Stolen Bases career: 216 season high: 31 in 1951 led AL: 31 in 1951, 22 in 1952, 25 in 1953 

Walks career: 850 season high: 86 in 1956 

Strikeouts career: 584 season high: 63 in 1960 (Minoso’s strikeout data from his Negro League seasons are unavailable) 

Batting Average career: .299 season high: .356 in 1947 

On Base Percentage career: .387 season high: .425 in 1956 

Slugging Percentage career: .461 season high: .556 in 1948 led NN2: .556 in 1948 

Total Bases career: 3,250 season high: 304 in 1954 led AL: 304 in 1954 

Sacrifice Hits career: 70 season high: 14 in 1952 

Fielding Percentage career: .969 season high: .985 in 1959 led NN2 3B: .953 in 1947, .919 in 1948 

Double Plays career: 41 season high: 11 in 1951 led AL LF: 3 in 1953, 1954, and 1960, 2 in 1957 

Putouts career: 3,508 season high: 347 in 1954 led AL LF: 267 in 1955, 282 in 1956, 317 in 1959, 277 in 1960 

Assists career: 466 season high: 130 in 1951 led AL LF: 13 in 1954 and 1958, 18 in 1955, 10 in 1956, 14 in 1959 and 1960 

DID YOU KNOW? 

-nicknamed the “Cuban Comet” 

-was the first black player ever for the White Sox, and rewarded the club by homering in his first at bat with them 

-was the first black Cuban in the recognized MLB 

-finished fourth in the AL MVP Award voting in 1951, 1953, 1954, and 1960, eighth in 1957, 12th in 1959, 18th in 1958, and 27th in 1956 

-batted over .300 ten times and over .320 four times 

-led the AL a record ten times in hit by pitch, twice in sacrifice flies, and once each in stolen base percentage and times on base 

-led AL outfielders in games in 1957 (152) and 1960 (154) 

-batted .333 with four walks and four runs scored in the 1947 Negro League World Series defeat of the Cleveland Buckeyes 

-finished second in the 1951 AL batting race 

-hit six home runs each off of Early Wynn and Jim Bunning, five off of Bob Lemon, three each off of Bob Feller and Billy Pierce, and one each off of Hal Newhouser, Whitey Ford, Jim Kaat, Allie Reynolds, and Bobby Shantz 

-also played eight games at first base, six at shortstop, and 17 as a pinch runner 

-ranks tenth in career hit by pitch with 195 

-among MLB leftfielders, ranks 21st in career games, 30th in double plays, 21st in putouts, and 16th in assists

WHY I THINK DICK ALLEN SHOULD BE IN COOPERSTOWN

WHY I THINK DICK ALLEN SHOULD BE IN COOPERSTOWN

By- Damien 

Dick Allen was one of the greatest hitters of all time. He played hard and aggressively because he thought (and perhaps knew) that he was always being treated inappropriately because he was black. You could see him writing “Boo!” in the dirt around first or third base, and was once accused of being the aggressor of a barroom brawl when he showed up with large cuts in his hands, which he really got when he pushed his car by the lights in the rain. He sometimes wore a batting helmet while in the field because fans would throw things at him. The point is that he played very hard, and got strong results on account of that effort. Allen was the NL Rookie of the Year in 1964 and the AL MVP in 1972. Allen was a big time slugger who hit 351 career home runs and led his league in homers twice and in slugging percentage three times. He also had a lifetime batting average of .292 and played first base, third base, and leftfield defensively. Dick Allen started his career with the Phillies in 1963, batting .292 in ten games. He batted .318 in 1964 to win the Rookie of the Year Award and batted over .300 in the next three years before slipping to .263 in “The Year of the Pitcher”, 1968. Allen batted .288 in the summer of 1969 before being traded to the Cardinals. He batted .279 with them in 1970 before being traded again, this time to the Dodgers. Allen batted .295 in Los Angeles in 1971 before being traded to the White Sox, mostly on account of his attitude and lack of discipline. He was the AL MVP the next year for batting .308 with 37 homers and 113 RBI’s. He also accomplished a rare feat when he hit two inside-the-park home runs in one game on July 31 (both off of Hall of Famer Bert Blyleven). Allen batted .316 and .301 after that before being traded back to the Phillies. He batted .233 in 1975 and .268 in 85 games in 1976. Allen, clearly on his way down, was traded by the Phillies to the A’s and retired after driving in 31 runs in 54 games in 1977. Dick Allen was one of the best sluggers in baseball’s history, a seven time .300 hitter in the heaviest pitchers’ era in history, and a useful defensive jack of all trades. He was easily good enough to be a Hall of Famer. 

LIFETIME STATISTICS 

Games career: 1,749 season high: 162 in 1964 

At Bats  career: 6,332 season high: 632 in 1964 

Hits career: 1,848 season high: 201 in 1964 

Doubles career: 320 season high: 38 in 1964 

Triples career: 79 season high: 14 in 1965 led NL: 13 in 1964 

Home Runs career: 351 season high: 40 in 1966 led AL: 37 in 1972, 32 in 1974 

Runs career: 1,099 season high: 125 in 1964 led NL: 125 in 1964 

Runs Batted In career: 1,119 season high: 113 in 1972 led AL: 113 in 1972 

Stolen Bases career: 133 season high: 20 in 1967 

Walks career: 894 season high: 99 in 1972 led AL: 99 in 1972 

Strikeouts career: 1,556 season high: 161 in 1968 led NL: 138 in 1964, 150 in 1965 

Batting Average career: .292 season high: .318 in 1964 

On Base Percentage career: .378 season high: .420 in 1972 led NL: .404 in 1967 led AL: .420 in 1972 

Slugging Percentage career: .534 season high: .632 in 1966 led NL: .632 in 1966 led AL: .603 in 1972, .563 in 1974 

Total Bases career: 3,379 season high: 352 in 1964 led NL: 352 in 1964 

Sacrifice Hits career: 19 season high: 6 in 1964 and 1965 

Fielding Percentage career: .975 season high: .995 in 1972 led NL LF: .972 in 1968 

Double Plays career: 756 season high: 112 in 1974 led NL 3B: 29 in 1965 

Putouts career: 7,658 season high: 1,235 in 1972 

Assists career: 1,711 season high: 325 in 1964 

DID YOU KNOW? 

-brother of Hank and Ron Allen 

-nicknamed “Crash” , “Crash Helmet”, and “The Wampum Walloper” 

-was a seven time all-star and homered in the 1967 game off of Dean Chance 

-went 1-for-3 on his MLB debut 

-set the Phillies’ team record for home runs by a rookie in 1964 (29) and set the White Sox’s franchise record for homers in a season in 1972 

-hit three home runs in one game on September 29, 1968 

-was the best batter ever against Hall of Famer Nolan Ryan (.364/.567/.682) 

-was 23rd in the AL MVP Award voting in 1974 and 35th in 1973 

-finished fourth in the NL MVP Award voting in 1966, seventh in 1964, 19th in 1967, and 28th in 1965 

-led his league in home run percentage and extra-base hits three times each and in times on base once 

-led NL third basemen in games in 1964 (162) 

-had a .417 OBP in the 1976 NLCS, his only postseason action 

-won two AL Player of the Week awards in 1974 

-ranks 43rd in career slugging percentage 

-also played four games at second base, three at shortstop, one in centerfield, three as a DH, 52 as a pinch hitter, and one as a pinch runner 

-After an estimated 529 foot home run that Allen hit on May 29, 1965, Hall of Famer Willie Stargell said, "Now I know why they boo Richie all the time. When he hits a home run, there's no souvenir.”

-his number 15 is retired by the Phillies