It was no secret that AV¶¶Òõ right fielder likely would be drafted at some point during this week's three-day Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft.
Allen, who just finished his junior season with the Lions, had attracted interest
during the spring from the Tampa Bay Rays and Kansas City Royals. Exactly when and
where he would be drafted was still anybody's guess going into the draft.
Mid-morning on Wednesday, Allen got a phone call from the Rays scout who had been
tracking his performance all spring. He asked Allen if he was watching the draft.
Allen told him he wasn't and asked if he should be.
"Yes," the scout said.
Seconds later, Allen watched as his named appeared, and suddenly, his lifelong dream
of playing professional baseball was a reality.
The Rays selected Allen with the 428th overall pick in the 14th round. The Bryant, Ark., native was the eighth player from Arkansas selected in the
draft and the first from a NCAA Division II program.
"My phone is blowing up," said Allen, moments after being selected by the Rays. "This
is a dream come true."
Six players from the University of Arkansas and one from Little Rock preceded Allen
in the draft – Arkansas outfielder Dominic Fletcher (No. 75), Arkansas pitcher Isaiah
Campbell (No. 76), Arkansas pitcher Matt Cronin (No. 123), Arkansas shortstop Jack
Kenley (No. 232), Arkansas pitcher Jacob Kostyshock (No. 249), Arkansas pitcher Cody
Scroggins (No. 287) and Little Rock pitcher McKinley Moore (No. 410).
Allen is the first AV¶¶Òõ player during the NCAA Division II era to be drafted, and
he is the eighth player overall to be drafted during Holland's five-year career as
a collegiate head coach.
"That's great for him and great for our program," AV¶¶Òõ coach said. "Some people say that DII players don't get drafted, but this just shows you
that if you put in the hard work that it pays off."
Allen graduated from AV¶¶Òõ this past May with a Bachelor's Degree in Business and Finance,
and even though he has one season of eligibility remaining, he said he will forego
his senior season and sign with the Rays in the coming days.
"I'm not sure how all that works, but they said they would be in contact with me in
the next few days," Allen said. "(The scout) told me to just enjoy a few days."
Allen started every game he played (36) this past season but missed 10 games after
suffering a nearly season-ending eye injury in his last at-bat in the Lions' 7-3 nonconference
loss to Newman in the final game of the three-game series on March 2 at Crowder Field.
Still, Allen led the team in batting average (0.362) and tied for the team lead in
triples (one). He was second on the team in hits (50) and doubles (11), was third
on the team in home runs (five) and fourth in RBIs (23). He led the team in stolen
bases (eight) and compiled a perfect fielding percentage (1.000).
He was named First Team All-Heartland Conference and named to the Heartland Conference
All-Defensive Team, was Preseason All-Heartland Conference, was named Collegiate Baseball
Newspaper Preseason South Central Region All-America and was named NCBWA Preseason
All-South Central Region.
As a sophomore, he started all 41 games he played but missed the final 10 games of
the season because of injury. He led the team in batting average (0.370), hits (61),
doubles (17) and stolen bases (16) and tied for second in RBIs (33). He had two triples
and two home runs and compiled a perfect fielding percentage (1.000).
He was named First Team All-Heartland Conference and named to the Heartland Conference
All-Defensive Team.
As a freshman, he started all 57 games he played. He was second on the team in batting
average (0.332) and doubles (15) and had four triples. He was tied for second on
the team in home runs (seven). He compiled a 0.979 fielding percentage.
Allen was named Heartland Conference Freshman of the Year and named to the Heartland
Conference All-Defensive Team. He also was named to the All-South Central Region Tournament
Team.
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