A’s may have the next Matt Chapman in camp
MESA, ARiZ. >> The Oakland A’s had their first Cactus League win in hand, and prospect Nick Allen was manning shortstop for the game’s final innings. The winds at Hohokam Stadium picked up and a Cincinnati Reds hitter lobbed a high-flying popup into foul territory beyond third base and home.
Allen tracked down that windswept ball all the way from his post near second base to a few feet shy of home plate for an out. It was a piece of cake. It was the third nifty defensive play Allen had made easy that day — he’d also stolen a hit that looked cleared to beat the shift and turned a difficult double play.
Though an unknown entity to most fans, Allen’s defensive wizardry is a known commodity in the A’s organization. At age 22, they already suspect they have a Gold Glover on their hands. And these A’s coaches know a Gold Glove infielder when they see one.
“I haven’t seen a glove like this since Matt Chapman,” A’s assistant hitting coach Eric Martins said. “He’s a magician out there.”
What differentiates the two, aside from playing different positions? Chapman is aggressive in his approach but poetic in his execution. His two platinum gloves came after years of redefining the way third base can be played — copycats are playing further back on the dirt, almost like a shortstop, to make riskier plays off difficult hops for more outs.
Allen, A’s coaches say, is just
as impactful and plays with more polish and flair. He’s shorter in stature — listed as 5-foot-9 — but sneaky strong. Like Chapman, he has a quick twitch, with quick hands and feet. A strong, accurate arm with substantial range. Like Chapman, he’s confident — sometimes too confident.
“Sometimes he makes it look fancier when he doesn’t have to because he gets bored making the routine play,” A’s farm director Ed Sprague said earlier last month.
In an A’s farm that’s been ranked among one of the worst in baseball by national analysts, Allen has emerged as one of the organizations’ top names. The
Athletic’s Keith Law ranked him third in the A’s system this season, saying “Allen could play shortstop in the majors right now.”
Why isn’t the next Matt Chapman in the majors yet? There’s one simple reason, and the A’s seem to think he’s not too far off from clearing the hurdle.
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Allen has heard the talk about his impressive glove, but he’d never fancied himself a defensive specialist. Growing up in San Diego, part of Allen’s routine involved heading out into the West Coast sun to throw a ball against the wall and field it.
“I always felt like my game, people notice the defense a lot. I felt even on both sides,” Allen said on a Zoom call. “I feel like defense ... I never thought about it. It just happened.”
To reach the big league’s doorstep, Allen needs to prove that he has the bat to withstand big league pitching. The knock against him has been a tendency to lift the ball too often. Since he isn’t a power hitter, Allen’s
success at the big league level will come if he can drive the ball consistently.
Allen knows this. But until this year, he’s had little opportunity to find his stride at the plate. Allen was drafted out of Parker High
School at age 18 and had a dismal year in A-ball with the Beloit Snappers, batting .239 with a .603 OPS. He looked cleared for redemption in 2019 with the high-A Stockton Ports, batting .292 with 22 doubles through 72 games, but the dream season came to an end thanks to a gruesome injury he sustained sliding into third base against the San Jose Giants. He came away from that June game with a partially torn ligament and high ankle sprain in his left leg.
Back healthy in 2020, Allen was ready to take off again until the pandemic hit and shut baseball down. For a player in dire need of reps, the last two years haven’t been giving.
“Offensively, yeah, he’s lacking at-bats,” Sprague said. “He’s a high school kid and he’s had a half-season
of A-ball and he hasn’t played above that.”
Martins first laid eyes on Allen when he was a high school kid. Martins was still scouting and remembers watching Allen float at shortstop with the Area Code underclass team in San Diego.
“Right then and there he just caught my attention with how good he was defensively. His instincts and feel for the game,” Martins said. Now that Allen is in his batting cages every day this spring, Martins can see the work Allen put in during the offseason to be a stronger hitter as he, hopefully, approaches a full season.
Back in San Diego during the pandemic shutdown, Allen refocused his attention on his lower body. Realizing he wasn’t using his strength the right way, Allen worked on his mobility.