Cleveland’s Allen puts it together for one night
It looked like 2021 was going to be Logan Allen's year. He enjoyed a torrid spring, effectively forcing his way into Cleveland's Opening Day rotation. Years of Cleveland working with him on his delivery since he was acquired seemingly allowed him to round into form all at once.
Then, after two mostly positive starts to begin the season, Allen's effectiveness and command were derailed, and he was knocked around in three consecutive outings, each one rougher than the last, eventually resulting in his being optioned back to Triple-a Columbus.
The search for the kind of potential Cleveland saw in Allen when he was acquired in the three-team Trevor Bauer trade continued. Allen was once a top-100 prospect but had struggled at times, and Cleveland set out trying to unlock something within him.
This spring, it looked like that time
had arrived, but Allen has instead spend most of the summer in Columbus, hoping to refine some rough edges with his delivery and rediscover his command. For a night, he put it all together again on Friday, limiting a loaded Red Sox lineup to one hit and one run over six innings along with five strikeouts. It was enough that Allen at one point yelled as he walked off the mound, several months of frustration building to one night of success.
"Yeah, man, a lot of built up emotion," Allen said. "It's been a tough year for me on the field and off the field and I needed that. I really did. I've been working my tail off and things haven't really gone my way and that's no one's fault but my own. It just felt good to have a plan, attack it, dominate it and keep my team in the game.”
The recent success of Cal Quantrill and Triston Mckenzie has set up a clear top five heading into 2022, along with Shane Bieber, Aaron Civale and Zach Plesac. For Allen, who will be out of options next spring, it's possible he could pitch out of the bullpen as a multi-inning option who can act as an opener whenever needed. Regardless of role, Allen on Friday night displayed a reminder of which Cleveland had been hoping to glimpse.
"It was awesome to see. Logan's worked incredibly hard," said president of baseball operations Chris Antonetti.