He is also remembered for fouling balls off the field —up to 10 in a row—until he the pitch was to his liking.
On August 17, 1957 Richie was playing for the Phillies against the New York Giants when, per usual, he hit a foul ball into the stand. Foul balls are usually a good thing for fans and spectators, but this foul ball found the face of Alice Roth.
There was just blood everywhere as the ball broke her nose!
Mrs. Roth was the wife of Earl Roth, the sports editor for the Philadelphia Bulletin and she was enjoying a nice day with her two grandsons up to that point.
Play was immediately stopped and the shocked Alice was attended to by medical personnel. As play resumed, she was being carried away on a stretcher to receive further attention.
The ball was pitched to Richie, who again hit a foul into the stands and unbelievably that ball hit poor Mrs. Roth right on the knee as she was being carried away!
Of course the Phillies treated the family like royalty after that, and the kids got autographed balls and free tickets. Excitedly they visited their Gran in hospital and asked her: “Grandma, do you think you could go to an Eagles game and get hit in the face with a football?”
