PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — After a pandemic-induced hiatus, the Phillies’ annual Wall of Fame weekend is back.
Fans and alumni will fill the ballpark the first weekend of August to celebrate the legacy of three Phillies icons: the late former president and CEO, David Montgomery, 1980 World Champion second baseman Manny Trillo, and late ace Roy Halladay.
On Aug. 6, Montgomery will posthumously receive the Buck O’Neil Lifetime Achievement Award in Cooperstown. Montgomery spent nearly half a century in baseball and held several roles with the Phillies, his hometown team.
“I’ve lived a dream,” he told KYW Newsradio in 2015. “I grew up in this city and the team I followed ended up hiring me. God knows why, but they did. And that was 1971, and I’ve had nothing but a wonderful ride.”
Here's a KYW Newsradio report from May 8, 2019:
Montgomery served as team president during one of the franchise’s most successful eras: 2007 to 2011, which included the 2008 World Championship. He died in 2019 at the age of 72 after a five-year battle with jaw cancer.
Trillo will be this season’s Wall of Fame inductee on Aug. 7. He was the second baseman during a memorable 1980 World Championship run, which included a huge two-run triple in the Phils rally during Game 5 of the National League Championship series.
Trillo was supposed to go on the wall last season, just like Halladay’s No. 34 was supposed to be retired by the ballclub.
Halladay pitched for the Phillies from 2010 to 2013, the first two of which were most notable. In 2010, he pitched a regular-season perfect game and a postseason no-hitter, in addition to winning the National League Cy Young Award.
Halladay died in a plane crash in 2017 at the age of 40.
The Phils originally planned to retire his number last season on the 10-year anniversary of his perfect game. On Aug. 8, he’ll be one of 10 players recognized by the Phils with a retired jersey.
The organization said former Phils catcher Carlos Ruiz, who caught Halladay’s legendary performances, will also be a part of the ceremony.