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Which Phillies stand the best chance to go into Hall of Fame with Dick Allen?
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- Which Phillies stand the best chance to go into Hall of Fame with Dick Allen?
Almost 50 years after his final major-league game, Phillies slugger Dick Allen will be posthumously inducted to the National Baseball Hall of Fame this summer.
Allen and Pirates great Dave Parker in December were the first named to the class of 2025 by the 16-member Classic Baseball Era committee, which considers players beyond their eligibility on the primary Hall of Fame ballot. The rest of the class of 2025 will be revealed on Jan. 21 with an induction ceremony in the Hall of Fame's hometown of Cooperstown, New York, scheduled for July 27. Four former Phillies are eligible for induction, a group led by second basemen Chase Utley and closer Billy Wagner.
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Allen died on Dec. 7, 2020, at the age of 78.
He played nine seasons in Philadelphia across two stints and became legendary for his power. Wielding a 40-ounce bat, Allen was known to hit home runs over the two-deck grandstand in left field of Connie Mack Stadium. He hit 351 of them in a 15-year career, which included seven All-Star selections and designations as the 1964 National League Rookie of the Year and the 1972 American League MVP (as a member of the Chicago White Sox ).
As the blog Cooperstown Cred pointed out , from 1964-1974 no hitter had a better OPS+ (adjusted on-base percentage plus slugging percentage) than Allen.
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Here's a breakdown of how the selection process works and the Phillies who have the best chance of joining Allen in the Hall of Fame.
How is the National Baseball Hall of Fame selected?
The Baseball Hall of Fame selects new members through voting by the Baseball Writers' Association of America and the Era Committees.
BBWAA members earn voting privileges by maintaining 10 consecutive years on a baseball beat.
Players are eligible for inclusion on the ballot five years after their last game. Players must be selected on at least 75% of ballots to be elected. Candidates can remain on the ballot for up to 10 years if they retain at least 5% of the vote each year.
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Each voter can select up to 10 players each year.
The Era Committees consider players no longer eligible for election by the BBWAA. A vote of 75% or more is needed for election.
PREVIOUS COVERAGE: Who will be the next Philadelphia Eagle Hall of Famer? Kelce, Reid, Allen among options
Who is on the 2025 Baseball Hall of Fame ballot?
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Bobby Abreu (6th year on ballot)
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Carlos Beltran (3rd)
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Mark Buehrle (5th)
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Carlos Gonzalez (1st)
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Curtis Granderson (1st)
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Felix Hernandez (1st)
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Torri Hunter (5th)
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Adam Jones (1st)
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Andruw Jones (8th)
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Ian Kinsler (1st)
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Russell Martin (1st)
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Dustin Pedroia (1st)
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Andy Pettitte (7th)
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Hanley Ramirez (1st)
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Manny Ramirez (9th)
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Fernando Rodney (1st)
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Alex Rodriguez (4th)
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Francisco Rodriguez (3rd)
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Jimmy Rollins (4th)
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CC Sabathia (1st)
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Ichiro Suzuki (1st)
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Troy Tulowitzki (1st)
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Chase Utley (2nd)
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Omar Vizquel (8th)
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Billy Wagner (10th)
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David Wright (2nd)
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Ben Zobrist (1st)
When will the next National Baseball Hall of Fame class be inducted?
The results will be announced Jan. 21 on MLB Network. The class of 2025 induction ceremony is scheduled for Sunday, July 27.
Which Philadelphia Phillies have the best chance of reaching the Hall of Fame?
Here is a look at Phillies – past and present – grouped by their odds to reach the Baseball Hall of Fame.
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Just set the date
Hall of Fame locks — we just need to know when. The only thing up for debate is their ultimate place among the all-time greats.
Bryce Harper | Phillies first basemen
Philadelphia Phillies first baseman Bryce Harper (3) receives congratulations from teammates after he hit a three-run home run in the sixth inning against the Detroit Tigers on Monday, June 24, 2024, at Comerica Park in Detroit.
When Bryce Harper was a brash 19-year-old stealing home on Cole Hamels , who would have thought the left-handed slugger would be remembered as one of the most influential Phillies of all time?
Harper's arrival in Philadelphia in 2019 signaled the beginning of the end of the organization's dark age. Although the Phillies' ascension with Harper took a few years, the franchise is now back to World Series-or-bust expectations.
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Harper has been even better than advertised when he signed a 13-year, $330 million contract with the Phillies. In his six seasons in Philadelphia, his OPS is 49% higher than the league average. Only five players had a better OPS in that span: Aaron Judge , Mike Trout , Yordan Alvarez , Juan Soto and Shohei Ohtani .
In 34 postseason games with the Phillies, Harper has a .325/.444/.709 line with 12 home runs, tied for the most since 2022 with teammate Kyle Schwarber . His career postseason OPS of 1.016 is the eighth-best in baseball history for players with at least 100 postseason at-bats. Harper trails Lou Gehrig, Babe Ruth, Randy Arozarena , Lenny Dykstra, Paul Molitor, George Brett and Carlos Beltran.
An eight-time All-Star and a two-time National League MVP, the 31-year-old Harper has amassed 51.1 wins above replacement through the first 13 seasons of his career per Baseball Reference. He is on pace to finish his career around 70 bWAR, the average for a Hall of Fame right fielder, according to the site.
Harper's 336 career home runs rank 22nd among all players through their age 31 seasons, per Baseball Reference .
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They have to be in, right? Right?
Some may quibble with these athletes' qualifications, but they are likely to reach the Hall of Fame.
Billy Wagner | In 10th year on the ballot
According to MLB.com , only three players have finished with between 70% and 75% of the vote: Nellie Fox in 1985, Orlando Cepeda in 1994 and Billy Wagner in 2024.
Fox and Cepeda were each in their final year of eligibility. Both were enshrined years later by the Veterans Committee.
The bet here is that Wagner in his last year of eligibility receives enough votes to get in via the BBWAA vote. Wagner appeared on 73.8% of ballots last year. He fell five votes short.
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If Wagner is elected, he will be the ninth reliever in the Hall of Fame, joining Mariano Rivera, Dennis Eckersley, Hoyt Wilhelm, Goose Gossage, Trevor Hoffman, Lee Smith, Rollie Fingers and Bruce Sutter.
His career ERA of 2.31 is lower than all of those players but Rivera and he is the all-time leader in strikeout percentage. Wagner is eighth in saves all-time (422). Batters hit .186 off the left-hander over his 16-year career.
Wagner came to Philadelphia after nine successful seasons in Houston . He pitched to a 1.86 ERA in 126 innings across 120 games in a Phillies uniform in 2004 and 2005. Wagner then spent parts of the next four seasons with the New York Mets before finishing his career in Boston and Atlanta .
Too close to call
Players in this section are either retired or have clearly left the prime of their years. They're revered in Philadelphia, but have they done enough to make it in? Some will be the subject of debate through many years on the ballot.
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Chase Utley | In second year on ballot
Utley's case is a question of peak versus longevity.
Few players of any position can rival Utley's five-year peak from 2005-2009 when the Southern California native had a .301/.388/.535 line while averaging 29 home runs, 39 doubles and almost five triples per season. In that span, only Albert Pujols accumulated more wins above replacement among hitters than Utley's 39.7, according to Baseball Reference .
Utley received MVP votes in nine consecutive seasons and won seven straight Silver Sluggers. At his best, he was the best second baseman in baseball.
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Utley's career trailed off significantly after 2010 when a series of injuries shortened his age 32-34 seasons (he averaged 106 games per year in that span). He never again logged more than 3.8 wins above replacement or 18 home runs in a season. Utley failed to reach historical benchmarks associated with the Hall of Fame such as 300 home runs (he finished with 259) and 2,000 hits (1,885).
Still, Utley is 15th all-time in career WAR (64.5) among second basemen, ahead of 11 Hall of Famers, according to Baseball Reference . Taking just each player's best seven seasons, Utley ranks ninth all-time among second basemen behind only Rogers Hornsby, Eddie Collins, Nap Lajoie, Joe Morgan, Charlie Gehringer, Jackie Robinson, Rod Carew and Robinson Cano . All are Hall of Famers with the exception of Cano, who is not yet eligible.
Utley appeared on 28.8% of ballots in his first year of eligibility.
Jimmy Rollins | In fourth year on ballot
In a certain way, Utley and Rollins, double-play partners for a decade, feel inseparable. But, there's a chance Utley one day reaches Cooperstown and Rollins does not.
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In 2024, his third year of eligibility, Rollins appeared on just 14.8% of ballots. It represented a small step up from the previous two years (9.4% and 12.9%).
Given that, something significant would need to change in the way Rollins is viewed by voters for the Phillies' all-time hits leader to reach the hall. But, Rollins does, in some ways, compare favorably to shortstops of his generation.
Rollins served as the Phillies primary shortstop from 2001-2014. Over that span, no full-time shortstop posted a higher bWAR than Rollins' 47.6 ( Derek Jeter is second on the list at 43.3). He is the only shortstop with 200 career home runs and 400 stolen bases and is third among shortstops in extra-base hits behind only Jeter and Cal Ripken Jr., as The Athletic's Jayson Stark pointed out in his 2022 case for Rollins .
Dinged for his defense later in his career, Rollins was not a high-value player for as long as many Hall of Famers. His 47.6 career WAR is 27th all-time, well behind the average of the 23 Hall of Fames shortstops (67.7), according to Baseball Reference . His career OPS trailed the major-league average by 5%.
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So you're saying there's a chance?
In another era of baseball this wouldn't be a discussion, but if tides shift these players could have an argument.
Cole Hamels | Eligible in 2026
Like most modern pitchers, Hamels doesn't have the career counting stats historically required for enshrinement.
But if Hall voters begin to lower their standards to reflect the modern game, Hamels has a chance. If they don't, there could be very few pitchers selected in the 2020s. Voters haven't elected a 21st-century pitcher since 2019 when Roy Halladay, Mike Mussina and Mariano Rivera went in.
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In 15 seasons, Hamels pitched to a 3.43 ERA and averaged 171 strikeouts per season. He went to the All-Star game four times and received Cy Young votes in four seasons, never finishing higher than fourth in the N.L. race. But, he was one of the games most reliable arms, starting more than 30 games in nine consecutive seasons and posting an ERA above league average in all but two of his 15 seasons.
Over his Phillies tenure, according to Baseball Reference , Hamels ranked third in the MLB in ERA+ behind Zack Greinke and Felix Hernandez. He ranked sixth in FIP, a measure of outcomes considered within the pitcher's sole control, and second in WHIP.
Hamels will likely be remembered more as a Phillies legend than an MLB legend, but there is a case for "Hollywood," the San Diego native.
Zack Wheeler | Phillies starting pitcher
Wheeler's enshrinement would require an even more drastic shift in Hall of Fame voting trends than Hamels', but there's not much more the Phillies could have asked of Wheeler through his first five seasons with the club, especially considering the era. Teams are asking less of their starters with each passing year.
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After injuries limited Wheeler's effectiveness at the start of his career, the right-hander has pitched to a 2.94 ERA in 133 starts since leaving the Mets for the Phillies in 2020. He has averaged 9.8 strikeouts per nine innings with a 1.031 WHIP. Wheeler has twice finished second in N.L. Cy Young voting.
Since 2020, Wheeler is third in MLB in ERA, fourth in WHIP and sixth in strikeouts. He has thrown more innings in that than any other pitcher with the exception of teammate Aaron Nola .
Wheeler has been even better in the playoffs. In 12 postseason games (11 starts) since making his playoff debut in 2022, Wheeler has a 2.18 ERA in 70.1 innings. It is the fourth-lowest career postseason ERA for a pitcher with at least 11 starts, according to Baseball Reference . Wheeler trails only Christy Mathewson (1905-1913), Waite Hoyt (1921-1931) and Madison Bumgarner (2010-2016).
Bobby Abreu | In seventh year on ballot
Philadelphia Phillies outfielder Bobby Abreu (53) works out prior to the game against the New York Yankees at George M. Steinbrenner Field.
There's a modern numbers-focused case to be made for Abreu, but it appears unlikely that the outfielder will reach Cooperstown.
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In his sixth year of eligibility, Abreu appeared on 14.8% of ballots.
Although he sports an impressive .291/.395/.475 career line, playing in an era favorable to offense Abreu was rarely considered among the best players of his time during his career. Abreu went to the All-Star game only twice and never finished higher than 12th in MVP voting.
He accumulated 60.2 WAR, which ranks 20th among right fielders all-time, according to Baseball Reference . The site says the players with the closest careers to Abreu are Yankees outfielder Bernie Williams and Diamondbacks outfielder Luis Gonzalez. Williams and Gonzalez dropped off the ballot after two and one year(s), respectively.
Brandon Holveck reports on high school sports for The News Journal. Contact him at bholveck@delawareonline.com .
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This article originally appeared on Delaware News Journal: Baseball Hall of Fame: Which Phillies could be enshrined in 2025?
