Phillies to honor former president David Montgomery with Wall of Fame induction

PHILADELPHIA -- David Montgomery probably would not have loved all the fuss on Saturday night at Citizens Bank Park.

But he would have been grateful.

The Phillies will honor Montgomery on Saturday when they place him on their Wall of Fame. The late Phillies president, who died in 2019 following a five-year battle with cancer, spent his entire life rooting for the Phillies. He spent his entire adult life working for the club, rising from ticket office representative to president. He led the design for Citizens Bank Park, which opened in 2004. He guided the Phillies to the 2008 World Series championship, two NL pennants and five NL East titles from 2007-11.

• Remembering David Montgomery

The National Baseball Hall of Fame honored Montgomery in 2020 with the Buck O’Neil Lifetime Achievement Award for his extraordinary efforts to enhance baseball’s positive impact on society.

How do we know Montgomery wouldn’t have loved the fuss on Saturday? Because he seemed uncomfortable by the attention in 2018, when the Phillies named their indoor practice facility in Clearwater, Fla., the David P. Montgomery Baseball Performance Center.

"The right word is I'm overwhelmed by what the organization has done," he said that day. "I've just been so fortunate. I was thinking about this the other day for some reason, I got to go to Connie Mack Stadium, first memory. I was probably about five years of age. We had linoleum in our porch in the back in our house in Roxborough. I used to try and slide on the linoleum the way Richie Ashburn would slide into the bases. I'd throw a pillow down and slide on my right side, my left side, a hook slide and all that.

"I've had the opportunity to work for the team I rooted for in the city I've lived in and loved my entire life."

Montgomery created a close-knit culture with the Phillies -- he knew everybody’s name, from vice presidents to sales interns. He knew their significant others’ names. He knew their children’s names. It was a culture that touched many players, who never knew how great they had it until they left.

That culture touched Cliff Lee and his family so much that the Phillies convinced him to re-sign for less money in December 2010.

"I believe that in whatever capacity you work for us, you determine the Phillies family," Montgomery said. "I believe that. As a family member, it's our responsibility to treat you like family and to get to know you as best we can. That's something I've always believed in. My business philosophy is pretty simple. We're in a service business and we're trying to do everything we can to attract fans and treat fans right. The best way to treat fans right is to treat the people you work with right.

"I don't touch fans, but so many people that work for us, touch fans directly every day and if they feel that we -- the organization, the ownership, the management -- care about them as people, then in my mind, that's the best way for those fans to be treated well."

Montgomery was asked that spring morning in Clearwater if he felt he was honored because his personal philosophy impacted so many people around him.

His answer captured his character perfectly.

"I'll let you decide that," Montgomery said. "In other words, look, it's what I believe in. I was blessed. I had wonderful parents. They said it so much. My mother would say, ‘Treat people the way you want to be treated yourself.’ You say, well, that's kind of trite. But the reality is, we're all on this earth for 'X' number of years, God knows. Why not enjoy each other? Why not make it easier for everybody? Why make it tougher? Show people you care, that's all."