John Middleton described it as correcting an injustice. For years, it was the Phillies’ policy not to retire a player’s number unless they were inducted into the Hall of Fame in Cooperstown.
That all changed today.
Dick Allen (known in other cities as Richie) had his iconic number 15 retired in front of a select, socially distanced, crowd. Speakers included John Middleton, Mike Schmidt, and Mike Tollin.
His Rookie of the Year campaign of 1964 set the tone for a, hopefully still, Hall of Fame career. He led the National League in runs scored, triples, and total bases.