Baseball on the Brink by William J. Ryczek

Author:William J. Ryczek
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: McFarland & Company, Inc., Publishers
Published: 2017-10-04T00:00:00+00:00

Richie Allen was one of the most feared sluggers and enigmatic personalities of the 1960s. In 1968, he was at the center of numerous controversies that led to the firing of Philadelphia manager Gene Mauch.

Many fans didn’t care much for Allen either. Dan Miller of Long Beach, California, wrote to The Sporting News, urging the Phillies to rid themselves of their problem child. “The trouble is just starting,” he warned.27 Philadelphia fans rode Allen all season, and he was the only player who was consistently booed in the genteel Astrodome.

Allen’s personality had hardened during his early days in baseball, when he was the only black player on the Little Rock, Arkansas, club. Fans put racist flyers under the windshield wipers of cars in the parking lots, and Allen’s teammates tried to gather them up before he could see them. They accompanied Allen to his car to provide protection from the violent Arkansas fans. Allen fought back on the field, hitting 33 home runs and driving in 97 runs, but the bitterness came with him when he arrived in Philadelphia, which, although a Northern city, had a history of racism, including the protests against Jackie Robinson playing in the city in 1947.

Allen thought his problems in Philadelphia stemmed from a batting practice fight with teammate Frank Thomas in 1965. Thomas, a notorious needler, kept referring to African-American outfielder Johnny Briggs as “boy,” which led to an argument between Allen and Thomas. Thomas hit Allen in the shoulder with his bat, and Allen punched Thomas in the jaw. Thomas was immediately placed on waivers and sold to the Astros, but Allen felt that the press and fans had blamed him for the incident, and from that moment on they treated him unfairly.

Allen didn’t help his image with his penchant for finding ways to get into trouble. Allen drove his own car from Philadelphia to New York for an April 30 game against the Mets rather than taking the team bus. He got caught in traffic and arrived just 20 minutes before game-time. Manager Gene Mauch said Allen had not asked for permission to drive, and sat him on the bench when he arrived.

In late May, Allen injured his groin horseback riding and missed several games. A couple of days later, he showed up late and Mauch fined him a second time. When Mauch called for an afternoon workout before a night game, Bill White quipped that it was the only way he could get Allen to the park in time for the game.

Shortly afterward, Allen said he wanted to be traded and sat out a few games, either because (a) his groin still bothered him; (b) he didn’t want to play, or; (c) Mauch didn’t want him to play. Finally, owner Bob Carpenter intervened and met with Allen. He told Mauch to put the troubled star back in the lineup.

Mauch followed orders, but he was not happy about it. He was an intense disciplinarian and did not make adjustments to accommodate problem

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.