PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — Last weekend, late Phillies legend Dick Allen needed a minimum of 12 votes on the Golden Days Era ballot to be sent to the Baseball Hall of Fame. The voting committee gave him 11. It is the second time he has been one vote short. And it comes at a time when many fans and observers have believed for years that Allen should have already been in.
Allen's son, Richard Allen Jr., says he wants an explanation for the snub, beyond the number of votes. "That would give some closure to — or some reasoning behind the whole thing," he said. But there was no press conference, no explanation, on Sunday.
Listen to the latest episode of the podcast KYW Newsradio In Depth for a conversation with Allen Jr.:
He says the last week has been emotional. It was not only another disappointing Hall of Fame result for Allen Jr. It was also two days before the day the great Phillies slugger died, one year before.
"It's kind of like a two-shot double gut shot," he said. Allen Jr. is still incredulous.
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"Really makes you scratch your head and wonder where? Why? What? I mean ... was a vote dropped along the way or something? Or, I don't know."
Allen Jr. says he has a message for the five committee members who voted against his dad — and any other member who did the same last time: "Take the personal out. … Look at what the man did on the field. Look at his performance on the field. Not the clubhouse, not in street clothes or anything like that. But just on the field."
The next time the Dick Allen is expected to be eligible for election is 2026, but Allen Jr. said he's not looking that far ahead.
"You know, am I gonna get slapped around emotionally three times?" he said. "So I don't even want to think about it."
KYW Newsradio reached out to the Hall of Fame for an explanation from the committee members, and they have not responded.