“I’ve always been a guy that I get to a (fielding) position and work through the ball,” Allen said. Allen worked to backhand the ball with his left foot forward, shuffle his feet quickly into a throwing position and fire to first in one fluid motion. What Allen and Martins focused on last year were balls grounded into the hole toward third base where that isn’t an option. On balls grounded into his vicinity or slowly, a shortstop might try to take a curved route to the ball and field it on the forehand side moving toward first base, where the throw will go. (But) sometimes you’re not getting yourself into a good position to make a throw across the diamond because you’re working so hard to get around it.”Īllen observed, “It’s a play that, if I can do it right, I’ll have more momentum toward first base and it’ll give me a better chance to get some outs.” “There are certain balls hit at an angle to your right that you work hard to try to get around, because that’s what you’ve always been taught. “It’s something we worked to clean up to make plays easier for him,” Martins said. Martins now says that Allen’s ability going to his backhand gives the A’s more flexibility in positioning him for coverage up the middle against certain hitters. But he worked with A’s infield coach Eric Martins on backhand plays, to get “more comfortable” with the technique. How often playable balls get put into play to his right side isn’t in his control. That was not necessarily intentional, Allen said. More than two of every five balls Allen touched on defense (42%) were backhand plays. According to Sports Info Solutions, Allen attempted backhand plays at a higher rate than any other MLB shortstop among the top 35 shortstops in 2022. It was also an example of a tendency Allen, projected to open this season as the A’s primary shortstop, employed at the position as a rookie. For Allen, 24, who debuted with the A’s last season, it was a play that made good on the raves about his defense in the minors.
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