01-27-2021, 04:07 AM
vision63 wrote:
None of them before 2003 were in trouble for steroids. It wasn't against MLB rules. They were in trouble for not saying so in court. Bonds and Clemens broke nary a rule. [I'm sure about Bonds and pretty sure about Clemens]. Dick Allen and my man Steve Garvey should be in there. Dick Allen just died.
Ritchie "Dick" Allen and "The Father of our Country (or at least Southern California)", Steve Garvey.
Dick Allen would've been at home playing in 2021. But in the 60's and 70's, being Black and noting the discrepancies that separated Black players from White players wasn't ready for prime time. Though it well should've been. No reason for him to just grin and bear it. Even the "Ritchie" and "Dick" monikers were a part of the the way he was treated in the press and by fans. In San Diego, we had (he's still around) a local sports announcer, Ted Leitner, who landed here from Philly (via Bronx, NY), and he always held Dick Allen up as a player with a voice who needed to be listened to and heard rather than shunned. As a result of hearing "the other side" it was always relatively easy to side with Dick Allen's take on things once the inevitable fires started burning around him.
While Steve Garvey made his name in Los Angeles, he also played well here in San Diego, and almost single-handedly helped boost the Padres past the Cubs in an unforgettable '84 NLCS after a horrible start.
And yes, they should both be in the HOF.