Dick Allen, 1942 - 2020

This must be the worst year ever for losing baseball stars of bygone days. Dick Allen has now joined the list that already included Lou Brock, Whitey Ford, Bob Gibson, Al Kaline, Joe Morgan, Tom Seaver, Jimmy Wynn, and Chicago favorites Glenn Beckert, Ed Farmer, and Jay Johnstone. Allen passed away today at his home in Wampum, Pennsylvania (the same town in which he was born on March 8, 1942).

    

DICK ALLEN

One of the most talented and enigmatic players of recent decades, Allen joined the White Sox in 1972 after eight seasons in the National League as “Richie” Allen. “Anyone who knows me well calls me Dick,” he said. “I don’t know why as soon as I put on a uniform it’s Richie. It makes me sound like I’m ten years old.” The Sox became Allen’s fourth team in four years when they acquired him from the Los Angeles Dodgers in exchange for lefthander Tommy John. 

     As he had done with his previous clubs, Allen marched to his own beat. He skipped batting practice, traveled separately from his teammates, and smoked on the bench. He showed up late even for the All-Star Game. Despite all this, he flourished with the Sox—at least for a while. Allen’s teammates liked and respected him, although they didn’t necessarily understand him. Manager Chuck Tanner hailed from New Castle, Pennsylvania, a stone’s throw from Wampum, and had known the Allen family for years. He blithely admitted that he had one set of rules for Allen and another for the rest of the club.

     The recalcitrant slugger responded, using his amazing strength and bat speed to terrorize American League pitchers in 1972. Allen clouted a then-club-record 37 homers to go with 113 RBIs and a .308 average as the Sox stayed in contention all year and jumped from ninth to third in A.L. attendance. “He made it fun,” general manager Roland Hemond said. “Dick got the fans out to the ballpark again.”

     Allen led the American League in homers, runs batted in, walks, on-base percentage, slugging, and on-base plus slugging (OPS) — and won the Most Valuable Player award in a landslide. A particular highlight was a doubleheader sweep of the Yankees on June 4 before a Bat Day crowd of 51,904 at Comiskey Park. In the nightcap, the Sox were trailing 4-2 in the bottom of the ninth when Allen blasted a three-run pinch-hit homer into the upper deck in left field.

     Allen seemed to be on his way to an even better year in 1973 before he missed the last three months of the season with a broken leg. In 1974, he missed the last three weeks by his own choice—but still led the league in home runs, slugging, and OPS. 

     Allen used the heaviest bat in the majors, a 42-ounce war club, and launched the most wicked line drives. He literally hit the ball through the back of a wooden seat on more than one occasion. He was also an alert and daring baserunner. He always wore a batting helmet in the field, a reminder of his days in Philadelphia, where fans pelted him with coins, batteries, and even bottles. White Sox fans showered Allen only with love, but even so, his attention span finally gave out during his third year in Chicago. He quit the team and went home on September 14, 1974.

      In his day, Allen was called a malcontent, a troublemaker, even a clown. He was none of those things. He was a quiet, introverted man who loved playing baseball but hated a lot of the stuff that went with it. If he had come along a decade or two later, his individualism would have been accepted and perhaps even celebrated. As it was, while few people claimed to know what made Allen tick, no one ever denied that he was a phenomenal talent. When Rich “Goose” Gossage was elected to the Hall of Fame, he was asked to name the player who had impressed him the most over the years. He chose Allen. “He’s the greatest player I’ve ever seen,” said Gossage.

 
 

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'Twas Fifty Years Ago: Chicago Sports Memories of 1970

On January 7, 1970, the Blackhawks’ rookie goalie Tony Esposito blanked the Detroit Red Wings 7-0 at the Stadium. The Hawks were now 16-15-5 for the season, just one point ahead of last-place Toronto and eight points behind fourth-place Detroit for the final playoff spot in the NHL’s powerful East Division (in those days, the “Original Six” clubs were all in the East, while the six three-year-old expansion teams were in the West).

TONY ESPOSITO

     In early February, defenseman and captain Pat Stapleton was lost for the season with a knee injury. General manager Tommy Ivan soon acquired veteran defenseman Bill White from Los Angeles to fill the void. White’s debut with the Hawks on February 21 was a memorable one, as it featured Bobby Hull’s 500th career goal. By the end of February, the Hawks’ record stood at 32-20-7. A playoff berth was all but assured, and the Hawks were aiming higher by now.

     The Blackhawks rampaged through March at 11-1-2, and ended the regular season with back-to-back wins over Montreal that not only clinched first place for the Hawks but eliminated the Canadiens from the postseason. It was a bitter pill for Montreal, winners of four of the past five Stanley Cups—and the team that had let Esposito get away on waivers.

     The Hawks swept Detroit in the first round of the playoffs (winning each game 4-2), and then were swept themselves by the Boston Bruins, who went on to win the Stanley Cup. Despite the rough landing, the future looked bright. Superstars Hull and Stan Mikita were still in their prime, rookies Keith Magnuson and Cliff Koroll were here to stay, and Esposito was on his way to the Hall of Fame. The man who was now called “Tony O” had set a record with 15 shutouts, won the Calder Trophy as rookie of the year and the Vezina Trophy as outstandining goalie, and finished second to the immortal Bobby Orr for MVP honors. “He is the guy we’ve rallied around,” said center Pit Martin. “I don’t think there has ever been a goaltender with a season like the one he’s had.”

 

The Cubs came into 1970 with their core group of players still intact but smarting from their epic late-season collapse the year before. They settled into first place on April 21 and stayed there for two months, until a 12-game losing streak in late June bounced them down to fourth. 

ERNIE BANKS

     General manager John Holland brought in some reinforcements, acquiring starting pitcher Milt Pappas on June 23 and first baseman/ outfielder Joe Pepitone on July 29. Journeyman outfielder Jim Hickman had a career year, while third baseman Ron Santo and starting pitchers Fergie Jenkins, Ken Holtzman, and Bill Hands were typically solid. Left fielder Billy Williams had his best year so far, with career highs in runs, hits, home runs, and runs batted in (he was runner-up to Cincinnati catcher Johnny Bench in MVP voting). “Just write his name in the lineup,” second baseman Glenn Beckert said of Williams, “and watch him hit.”

     The Cubs crept back into contention as the season wore on, finding themselves only a game and a half out of first place as late as September 19. Things went south thereafter, and they ended up five games behind the division-winning Pittsburgh Pirates by season’s end. 

     Ernie Banks provided a highlight when he clouted his 500th home run on May 12 at Wrigley Field. It was a prototypical Banks homer, a low line drive about halfway up the bleachers in left-center field. Unfortunately, it was a dreary day, and only 5,264 showed up at the Friendly Confines to witness the historic blow. The Cubs couldn’t draw flies for most of Banks’s career, so it’s safe to say that few, if any, other players in baseball history performed so well for so long before so many empty seats as Mr. Cub.

 

In only their fourth season of existence (having joined the NBA as an expansion franchise in 1966), the Bulls stamped themselves as a team on the rise in 1969-70. Their fiery young coach Dick Motta got the team to play his kind of basketball, which meant going all out all the time—especially on defense. His main man was guard Jerry Sloan, who emerged as the team’s heart and soul. “It took me about ten minutes to recognize he was very special,” Motta said. “There weren’t too many players who had his intensity.”

JERRY SLOAN

     In addition to Sloan, the Bulls’ key players were forwards Chet Walker and Bob Love, guards Clem Haskins and Bobby Weiss, and center Tom Boerwinkle. “Boerwinkle really set the whole Motta program up,” said Sloan, “because of his ability to pass the ball.” The Bulls were 17-18 for the season when they lost Sloan to a knee injury on December 19, 1969. Sloan returned to the lineup on January 24, 1970, but was able to play only eight minutes before going on the shelf again until February 20. In all he missed 29 games, during which time the Bulls went 12-17.    

     After Sloan came back for good, the Bulls clawed their way to a playoff berth by winning 10 of their last 16 games. Although the Bulls finished just 39-43 and lost four out of five playoff games, they knew that better days were ahead. As Motta left the locker room after the last playoff game, he said, “I wish the season started all over again tomorrow.” The Bulls won 50 or more games in each of the next four seasons and sent the turnstiles spinning at Chicago Stadium.

 

By winning their first two games in 1970, the Bears exceeded their win total for 1969. Alas, they dropped seven of the next eight, and that was all she wrote. The Bears finished 6-8. Their defense was all right for the most part, but the offense left a lot to be desired. Quarterback Jack Concannon completed just 50 percent of his passes for 2,130 yards, throwing 16 touchdowns and 18 interceptions.    

DICK BUTKUS

     The Bears rushed for only 1,092 yards as a team. Ross Montgomery led the squad with 229 yards, followed closely by Don Shy (227) and Ronnie Bull (214). The great Gale Sayers, attempting a comeback from the devastating knee injury he suffered the previous year, played in just two games—carrying the ball 23 times for a total of 52 yards. 

     The lone bright spot on offense was wide receiver Dick Gordon, who caught 71 passes for 1,026 yards and 13 touchdowns. Not surprisingly, he was named first-team All-Pro and invited to the Pro Bowl. Perhaps it goes without saying that middle linebacker Dick Butkus was as ferocious as ever. It was his sixth year in the league, and he was a Pro Bowler for the sixth time and first-team All-Pro for the fourth time. Two other Bears went to the Pro Bowl—veteran punter Bobby Joe Green and the electrifying kick returner Cecil Turner.

 

The 1970 White Sox started off badly and got worse as the season progressed. They dropped five of their first six games and went on from there. At no point in time were they at or above .500. Their best month was August, in which they won 12 and lost 18.

TOMMY JOHN

     The Sox had some good players who had reasonably good years, but there were not enough of them. Mainstays included starting pitcher Tommy John, reliever Wilbur Wood, shortstop Luis Aparicio, third baseman Bill Melton (who set a new franchise record with 33 homers), and catcher Ed Herrmann.

     The club finished 56-106, achieving their low-water marks for both games under .500 (50) and games behind the division leader (41) on the last day of the season. Perhaps more alarmingly, they drew fewer than 500,000 fans to Comiskey Park. A doubleheader on September 21 attracted a “crowd” of only 672. A single game two days later drew 693.

     Fortunately, things were about to pick up. The buoyant Chuck Tanner was hired as manager late in the season. The next year, he and pitching coach Johnny Sain converted Wood into a starter, and Wilbur became a major star. Also on the horizon was the arrival of the one-of-a-kind broadcaster Harry Caray—whose presence would ensure that even if the Sox were bad, they wouldn’t be boring.

 

In Memoriam, 1970

·       Paul Christman, 51, Chicago Cardinals quarterback 1945-1949, NFL champion 1947.

·       Ripper Collins, 66, Cubs first baseman 1937-1938.

·       Paul Edmondson, 27, White Sox pitcher 1969.

·       Jimmy Conzelman, 72, Decatur Staleys halfback 1920; Chicago Cardinals head coach 1940-1948, NFL champion 1947; Hall of Fame 1964.

·       Chick Gandil, 82, White Sox first baseman 1910, 1917-1919, world champion 1917; reputed to be a ringleader of the “Black Sox” scandal of 1919.

·       Lefty Leifeld, 87, Cubs pitcher 1912-1913.

·       Sonny Liston, 40(?), won world heavyweight championship at Comiskey Park in 1962 and lost it to Muhammad Ali in 1964.   

·       Jakie May, 74, Cubs pitcher 1931-1932.

·       Johnny Mostil, 74, White Sox outfielder 1918, 1921-1929.

·       Lou Novikoff, 54, Cubs outfielder 1941-1944.

·       Brian Piccolo, 26, Bears running back 1966-1969 and the subject of the unforgettable TV movie Brian’s Song.

·       Mike Rabold, 33, Bears guard 1964-1967.

·       Dave Robertson, 81, Cubs outfielder 1919-1921.

·       Charlie Root, 71, Cubs pitcher 1926-1941, winningest pitcher in Cubs history and the man who gave up Babe Ruth’s “called shot” in 1932 World Series.

·       Ray Schalk, 77, White Sox catcher 1912-1928, world champion 1917; White Sox manager 1927-1928; Hall of Fame 1955.

·       Clark Shaughnessy, 78, University of Chicago head football coach 1933-1939; Bears defensive assistant coach 1951-1958, Bears defensive coordinator 1959-1962.