Robert Gray Allen (October 23, 1937 – December 12, 2023) was an American

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...

pitcher In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throws ("pitches") the baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of retiring a batter, who attempts to either make contact with the pitched ball or draw ...

. He batted and threw

left-handed In human biology, handedness is an individual's preferential use of one hand, known as the dominant hand, due to it being stronger, faster or more dextrous. The other hand, comparatively often the weaker, less dextrous or simply less subjecti ...

. He pitched for part or all of five seasons in

, all with the

Cleveland Indians The Cleveland Guardians are an American professional baseball team based in Cleveland. The Guardians compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. Since , they have played at Progressive F ...

Major League Baseball career

Allen was signed by the Indians as an amateur free agent in 1956. He had an impressive 1960 season with Cleveland's Mobile minor league affiliate with a 16–11 won-loss record. Allen made his major league debut on April 14, 1961, with the Cleveland Indians at age 23. On that day, Allen pitched to three hitters, all of whom he retired. Despite a record of 3–2 and 3.75 earned run average in 81 innings pitched, 1962 saw Allen's record slip to 1–1 with an earned run average of 5.87 in 30 innings. He spent much of 1962 with Cleveland's Salt Lake City farm club, posting a 5–2 record there. Allen had a record of 1–2 and an ERA of 4.66 for Cleveland in 1963, pitching 56 innings. After the season, the Indians traded Allen to the

Pittsburgh Pirates The Pittsburgh Pirates are an American professional baseball team based in Pittsburgh. The Pirates compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) Central division. Founded as part of the American Associati ...

on December 14 for players to be named. The Pirates sent Allen back to Cleveland in April 1964. He appeared as a Pittsburgh Pirate on his 1964

Topps The Topps Company, Inc. is an American company that manufactures chewing gum, candy, and collectibles. Formerly based in New York City, Topps is best known as a leading producer of American Football Card, American football, Baseball card, baseb ...

baseball card A baseball card is a type of trading card relating to baseball, usually printed on cardboard, silk, or plastic. In the 1950s they came with a stick of gum and a limited number of cards. These cards feature one or more baseball players, teams, sta ...

, #209, although he never appeared in a regular season major league game as a Pirate. He did not pitch in the major leagues in 1964 or 1965. After years of working back to the Major Leagues, Allen had a record of 2–2 and a 4.21 ERA in 1966, pitching 51 innings. In 1967, Allen's record was 0–5 despite a 2.98 ERA, pitching 54 innings. Allen never pitched in the majors again. Allen had a lifetime 7–12 record, a 4.11 ERA, 132 walks, and 199 strikeouts. He never started a major league game, appearing as a reliever in 204 games and recording 19 saves. Allen was 4 for 31 with a lifetime

batting average Batting average is a statistic in cricket, baseball, and softball that measures the performance of batters. The development of the baseball statistic was influenced by the cricket statistic. Cricket In cricket, a player's batting average is ...

of .129. His lifetime

fielding percentage In baseball statistics, fielding percentage, also known as fielding average, is a measure that reflects the percentage of times a defensive player properly handles a batted or thrown ball. It is calculated by the sum of putouts and assists, div ...

was .944.

Death

Allen died at an assisted living facility on December 12, 2023, at the age of 86.

References

External links

, o
Pelota Binaria (Venezuelan Winter League)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Allen, Bob 1937 births 2023 deaths Baseball players from Texas Burlington Indians players (1958–1964) Cardenales de Lara players American expatriate baseball players in Venezuela Cleveland Indians players Fargo-Moorhead Twins players Hawaii Islanders players Major League Baseball pitchers Mobile Bears players North Platte Indians players People from Tatum, Texas Portland Beavers players Reading Indians players Salt Lake City Bees players Tiburones de La Guaira players Wichita Aeros players