Fletcher Manson "Sled" Allen (August 23, 1886 – October 16, 1959) was a

professional baseball Professional baseball is organized baseball in which players are selected for their talents and are paid to play for a specific team or club system. It is played in baseball league, leagues and associated farm teams throughout the world. Mod ...

catcher Catcher is a Baseball positions, position in baseball and softball. When a Batter (baseball), batter takes their at bat, turn to hit, the catcher crouches behind home plate, in front of the (home plate, home) Umpire (baseball), umpire, and recei ...

and

manager Management (or managing) is the administration of an organization, whether it is a business, a nonprofit organization, or a government body. It is the art and science of managing resources of the business. Management includes the activities o ...

. Allen was also a sports promoter after retiring from baseball. Allen played a total of nine seasons in professional baseball, including a part of one in

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), ...

with the

St. Louis Browns The St. Louis Browns were a Major League Baseball team that originated in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, as the Milwaukee Brewers. A charter member of the American League (AL), the Brewers moved to St. Louis, Missouri, after the 1901 season, where they p ...

(1910). Over his major league career, Allen batted .130 with three

hits Hits or H.I.T.S. may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Music * ''H.I.T.S.'', 1991 album by New Kids on the Block * ''...Hits'' (Phil Collins album), 1998 * ''Hits'' (compilation series), 1984–2006; 2014 - a British compilation album se ...

in 14

games played Games played (GP) is a statistic used in team sports to indicate the total number of games in which a player has participated (in any capacity); the statistic is generally applied irrespective of whatever portion of the game is contested. Basebal ...

. Allen also played in the

minor leagues Minor leagues are professional sports leagues which are not regarded as the premier leagues in those sports. Minor league teams tend to play in smaller, less elaborate venues, often competing in smaller cities/markets. This term is used in Nor ...

with the Class-C Enid Railroaders (1908–1909), the Class-A

Louisville Colonels The Louisville Colonels were a Major League Baseball team that also played in the American Association (AA) throughout that league's ten-year existence from 1882 until 1891. They were known as the Louisville Eclipse from 1882 to 1884, and as ...

(1910) and the Class-B

Houston Buffaloes The Houston Buffaloes, Houston Buffalos, or Buffs were an American minor league baseball team, and were the first minor league team to be affiliated with a Major League Baseball, Major League franchise, which was the St. Louis Cardinals. The clu ...

(1912–1916). During his minor league career, Allen compiled a .210 batting average with 465 hits, 63 doubles, 15 triples and five

home run In baseball, a home run (abbreviated HR) is scored when the ball is hit in such a way that the batter is able to circle the bases and reach home plate safely in one play without any errors being committed by the defensive team. A home run i ...

s in 748 games. Allen was a manager in the minor leagues for the Class-B Houston Buffaloes (1911), the Class-D Ranger Nitros (1921), the Class-D Lubbock Hubbers (1923) and the Class-A Amarillo Texans (1928). Allen is the father of

country music Country (also called country and western) is a genre of popular music that originated in the Southern and Southwestern United States in the early 1920s. It primarily derives from blues, church music such as Southern gospel and spirituals, ...

singer Terry Allen.

Professional career

Early career

In 1908, Allen began his

career with the Class-C Enid Railroaders of the

Western Association The Western Association was the name of five different leagues formed in American minor league baseball during the 19th and 20th centuries. The oldest league, originally established as the Northwestern League in 1883, was refounded as the Western ...

. With the Railroaders that season, Allen batted .147 with 47

, five doubles, one

triple Triple is used in several contexts to mean "threefold" or a " treble": Sports * Triple (baseball), a three-base hit * A basketball three-point field goal * A figure skating jump with three rotations * In bowling terms, three strikes in a row * ...

and one

in 109

. During the 1909 season, Allen continued playing for the Enid Railroaders. He batted .257 with 94 hits, 15 doubles, one triple and two home runs in 108 games.

St. Louis Browns

On September 1, 1909, Allen was drafted by the

from the Enid Railroaders in Major League Baseball's Rule 5 draft. Allen made his major league debut on May 4, 1910. His final major league appearance was on August 5, 1910. During his time with the Browns, Allen batted .130 with three runs, three hits, one double and one

walk Walking (also known as ambulation) is one of the main gaits of terrestrial locomotion among legged animals. Walking is typically slower than running and other gaits. Walking is defined by an 'inverted pendulum' gait in which the body vaults ov ...

in 14 games played. Allen played 12 total games on defense. Allen played all of his 12 games at the catcher position and spent a part of a game at

first base A first baseman, abbreviated 1B, is the player on a baseball or softball team who fields the area nearest first base, the first of four bases a baserunner must touch in succession to score a run. The first baseman is responsible for the majori ...

. He committed three errors, and seven assists and made 21

putout In baseball statistics, a putout (denoted by ''PO'' or ''fly out'' when appropriate) is awarded to a defensive player who (generally while in secure possession of the ball) records an out by one of the following methods: * Tagging a runner wit ...

s in 31

total chances In baseball statistics, total chances (TC), also called ''chances offered'', represents the number of plays in which a defensive player has participated. It is the sum of putouts plus assists plus errors. ''Chances accepted'' refers to the total ...

. After leaving the Browns, Allen joined the minor league Class-A

for the rest of the 1910 season. In 30 games with the Colonels, Allen batted .227 with 22 hits, one double and one triple.

Houston Buffaloes

Allen joined the Class-B

of the

Texas League The Texas League is a Minor League Baseball league which has operated in the South Central United States since 1902. It is classified as a Double-A league. Despite the league's name, only its five South Division teams are actually based in the ...

in 1911. That season, Allen was a

player-manager A player-coach (also playing coach, captain-coach, or player-manager) is a member of a sports team who simultaneously holds both playing and coaching duties. A player-coach may be a head coach or an assistant coach. They may make changes to the sq ...

, making it his debut as a

in professional baseball. He batted .187 with 69 hits, 11 doubles, two triples and two home runs in 155 games that season. Allen also led the Buffaloes to a 71–75 record in 1911. In 1912, Allen continued his tenure with the Buffaloes as a player, but not a manager. In 92 games that season, Allen batted .243 with 75 hits, nine doubles and three triples. Allen continued playing with the Houston team in 1913 and batted .208 with 51 hits, one double and two triples in 80 games played. In 1914, Allen batted .218 with 48 hits, seven doubles and two triples in 68 games that season with Houston. Allen played 92 games with the Houston team in 1915. In those games, Allen batted .215 with 61 hits, 10 doubles and four triples. Allen spent hit final season as a professional baseball player in 1916. With Houston, Allen batted .185 with 28 hits and four doubles in 54 games played.

Managerial career

In 1921, Allen joined the Class-D Ranger Nitros of the

West Texas League The West Texas League was a Class D level minor league baseball league that existed from 1920 to 1922 and from 1928 to 1929. 1920-1922 The following teams played in 1920: Abilene Eagles, Ranger Nitros, Mineral Wells Resorters, Cisco Scouts, ...

as a manager. At the helm of the Nitros, Allen led them to a 37–43 record. Allen was hired as the manager of the Class-D Lubbock Hubbers of the Panhandle-Pecos Valley League during their inaugural season in 1922. That season, the Hubbers went 79–59. In 1923, still at the helm of the Lubbock team, Allen led them to a league championship after they finished with a 57–47 record. In 1928, Allen was one of three managers who led the Class-A Amarillo Texans of the Western League.

Later life

After his professional career, Allen was a sports promoter. Allen, who resided in

Lubbock, Texas Lubbock ( ) is the 10th-most populous city in the U.S. state of Texas and the seat of government of Lubbock County. With a population of 260,993 in 2021, the city is also the 85th-most populous in the United States. The city is in the northw ...

in the 1940s, converted a

church Church may refer to: Religion * Church (building), a building for Christian religious activities * Church (congregation), a local congregation of a Christian denomination * Church service, a formalized period of Christian communal worship * Chris ...

into a

nightclub A nightclub (music club, discothèque, disco club, or simply club) is an entertainment venue during nighttime comprising a dance floor, lightshow, and a stage for live music or a disc jockey (DJ) who plays recorded music. Nightclubs gener ...

where he promoted

boxing Boxing (also known as "Western boxing" or "pugilism") is a combat sport in which two people, usually wearing protective gloves and other protective equipment such as hand wraps and mouthguards, throw punches at each other for a predetermined ...

and

wrestling Wrestling is a series of combat sports involving grappling-type techniques such as clinch fighting, throws and takedowns, joint locks, pins and other grappling holds. Wrestling techniques have been incorporated into martial arts, combat ...

events. Allen spent several years at the aforementioned nightclub before opening the "Sled Allen Arena". The arena was host to many events, including an

interracial Interracial topics include: * Interracial marriage, marriage between two people of different races ** Interracial marriage in the United States *** 2009 Louisiana interracial marriage incident * Interracial adoption, placing a child of one raci ...

dancing event featuring

Ray Charles Ray Charles Robinson Sr. (September 23, 1930 – June 10, 2004) was an American singer, songwriter, and pianist. He is regarded as one of the most iconic and influential singers in history, and was often referred to by contemporaries as "The Ge ...

in the 1950s. The "Cosmopolitan Dance" as it was called was an event that was aimed at bringing

Hispanic The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or Hispanidad. The term commonly applies to countries with a cultural and historical link to Spain and to Vic ...

African-American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American ...

s and

Caucasian Caucasian may refer to: Anthropology *Anything from the Caucasus region ** ** ** ''Caucasian Exarchate'' (1917–1920), an ecclesiastical exarchate of the Russian Orthodox Church in the Caucasus region * * * Languages * Northwest Caucasian l ...

s together. Allen also promoted shows for

Little Richard Richard Wayne Penniman (December 5, 1932 – May 9, 2020), known professionally as Little Richard, was an American musician, singer, and songwriter. He was an influential figure in popular music and culture for seven decades. Described as the " ...

and

Elvis Presley Elvis Aaron Presley (January 8, 1935 – August 16, 1977), or simply Elvis, was an American singer and actor. Dubbed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, King of Rock and Roll", he is regarded as Cultural impact of Elvis Presley, one ...

Personal

Allen was born on August 23, 1886 in

West Plains, Missouri West Plains is a city in, and the county seat of Howell County, Missouri, United States. The population was 12,184 at the 2020 census. History The history of West Plains can be traced back to 1832, when settler Josiah Howell (after whom Howell ...

. He is the father of

singer Terry Allen. After his baseball career, Allen resided in

. Allen died in Lubbock on October 16, 1959 and was buried in City of Lubbock Cemetery. Allen's wife, Pauline, was a

pianist A pianist ( , ) is an individual musician who plays the piano. Since most forms of Western music can make use of the piano, pianists have a wide repertoire and a wide variety of styles to choose from, among them traditional classical music, ja ...

References

;General references # # ;Inline citations

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Allen, Sled 1886 births 1959 deaths People from West Plains, Missouri Baseball players from Missouri St. Louis Browns players Houston Buffaloes managers Houston Buffaloes players Louisville Colonels (minor league) players Major League Baseball catchers American boxing promoters