In the wake of recent events, here are some notes on the White Sox and the Hall of Fame:
*WELCOME TO THE CLUB: Dick Allen, elected by the Classic Baseball Era committee Sunday, is the 35th White Sox player to make the Hall of Fame. The last players with Sox ties to be elected to Cooperstown were Jim Kaat and Minnie Minoso in 2022.
*THE BASICS: With 12 votes from the 14-member committee needed for election, Allen received 13 votes. Dave Parker topped the ballot with 14 votes.
Tommy John, dealt by the Sox to the Dodgers for Allen on Dec. 2, 1971, fell short of induction with seven votes. Pre-surgery John won 82 of his 288 games for the White Sox between 1965 and 1971.
Third baseman Ken Boyer, who played for the Sox in 1967, received less than five votes.
*AND THEN THERE WAS ONE: Allen’s election means that Jose Abreu (2020) is the only Sox player to win an American League MVP not in the Hall of Fame. Nellie (MVP in 1959) was inducted in 1997 and Frank Thomas (MVP in 1993 and 1994) was elected in 2014.
*FIRST THINGS FIRST: Allen joins Thomas, Jim Thome, Harold Baines, Minoso, Ron Santo, Carlton Fisk, George Davis, Larry Doby and Luke Appling as Hall of Famers to play first base for the Sox.
*VETERAN STREAK: Allen is the fourth consecutive Sox player elected to the Hall by a Veterans Committee (Kaat and Minoso in 2002; Baines in 1997). Thome in 2018 was the last Sox player voted to the Hall via the writers ballot.
*GREETINGS FROM PA: Allen is third White Sox Hall-of-Famer from Pennsylvania. The native of Wampum will join Ken Griffey Jr. (Donora), Fox (St. Thomas) and Ed Walsh (Plains) as Sox Keystone Staters enshrined in Cooperstown
*CROSSOVER: In addition to the Sox, Allen also played for the Phillies, Dodgers, Cardinals and A’s.
Allen joins Thome, Steve Carlton, Kaat, Chief Bender and Johnny Evers as Hall-of-Famers to play for the Sox and Phils.
For the Dodgers that list reads Allen, Thome and Hoyt Wilhelm while the HOF’ers the Sox and Cards share are Allen, Minoso, Carlton, Kaat, Wilhelm and Clark Griffith. Mutual A’s and Sox Hall of Famers are Allen, Thomas, Tim Raines, Goose Gossage, Fox, George Kell, Al Simmons and Eddie Collins.
*AAAAAAAAAA: Allen is the fourth Sox player whose last name starts with A (Roberto Alomar, Luis Aparicio, Luke Appling) to make the Hall of Fame. The only other letter with that many Sox HOF’ers is S (Tom Seaver, Santo, Simmons, Ray Schalk)
*RIP: Allen is the fifth Sox player to make the Hall posthumously. The others: Minoso, Santo, Davis and Fox.
*O BROTHER: Allen and Roberto Alomar are the only Sox Hall-of-Famers to have a brother play for the team.
And, both sets of brothers were Sox teammates.
Dick and Hank Allen played together on the 1972 and 1973 Sox while Roberto and Sandy Alomar Jr. were Sox teammates in 2003 and 2004.
*THE COBRA: A few nuggets on Parker …
—“The Cobra” hit for a higher average (.357) at New Comiskey Park/US Cellular Field/Guaranteed Rate Field than in any other of the other 28 parks in which he played. Parker was 5-for-14 in three games for the 1991 Angels at the Sox current home
—Parker slugged .319 with an OPS of .595 vs. the Sox — both his lowest output against any team
—Parker hit .200 (12-for-60) in 15 games at Comiskey Park for the A’s and Brewers between 1988 and 1990. The onky park where he hit for lower average was Texas’ Arlington Stadium (.194).
—Parker was the Brewers’ DH in the final Opening Day at Comiskey Park (1-for-4 with a strikeout on April 9, 1990) and in Milwaukee’s final game at the park (0-for-4 with two strikeouts on Sept. 27, 1990).
More on Dick Allen …