Photo by Rashaad Jorden via Flickr
Guy Ciarrocchi: Dick Allen — A Hall of Famer in baseball and in life
This past weekend, Dick Allen was formally inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame. Tragically, he passed away before he could personally receive this well-deserved — and unfairly delayed — honor. He played for the Phillies twice, in the 1960’s and 70’s.
In our family, Allen has been a “Hall of Famer” for decades — aside from his very impressive numbers over his career as a baseball player on the Phillies, and beyond.
My great uncle (Jack Kelleher) had only one job — well, only one employer — his entire life: the Philadelphia Phillies. His career was only interrupted by his service in the Army during the Korean War.
“Reds” (as he was called) worked everywhere behind the scenes for the Phillies — as part of the grounds crew, handling supplies for the stadium and stocking the locker room (both at Connie Mack and The Vet). He got to meet and work with a lot of Phillies’ players from the 1950’s until his death, a few years before the Phillies moved to The Bank.
Uncle Jack passed after a rough battle with cancer. My mom — his niece — was his primary caregiver during his illness. Reds never married. For years, he had lived with his big sister — my mom’s mom, our “gram,” — who had passed a few years before him. My mom also handled Jack’s services — the viewing and funeral mass. (The Phillies sent an oversized wreath of red roses arranged into their logo — a real class act.)
About a week or two after Uncle Jack passed, the phone rang at my mom’s home.
Dick Allen — long since retired — called my mom to express his condolences on Reds’ passing. They spoke for almost an hour, sharing stories about Uncle Jack, family, and the Phillies.
We will never forget the kindness, the sincerity and humanity of this larger than life figure taking time to track down my mom, to find her phone number, to call her — and to talk…and talk.
I only got to see Dick Allen play a few times, during his second stint with the Phillies. My memory is that all the “grown-ups” were thrilled that this larger-than-life MVP had come home to play for the Phillies again. And they were grateful to get a “do-over” to show Dick Allen the support he so deserved — and sometimes didn’t get — during his first stint with the Phillies.
In life, there are great athletes. There are good people.
Dick Allen was both — and now, generations will know.
Guy Ciarrocchi writes for Broad + Liberty and RealClear Pennsylvania. Guy — a “survivor” of Phillies Fantasy Camp in 2025 — attended his first Phillies game at age 6. Follow Guy at @PaSuburbsGuy
Bittersweet story, Guy. I got to se ‘Richie’ Allen play at Connie Mack during his first stint before i was a little leaguer. He used to scratch messages into the dirt around the bag down at first base while in the field. I saw him hit a ball out of Connie Mack over the roof overhang in left-center field with that ‘buggy whip’ swing he had. I’m glad he made the Hall.