More Draft News - Giants sign 18th rd. pick Brandon Allen (RHP - HS, Fla)

by Fla-Giant on Jul 20, 2010 8:41 PM PDT

I swear, the Giants need a new director of communications/publicity, and Schulman, Baggs, and the other Bay Area baseball reporters should hang their heads in shame. Getting scooped by the local, small-town paper is understandable since the word of the signing was probably all over town 5 minutes after Allen hung up the phone with the Giants. But neglecting to find and report a story that's been out on the net and newswires for 3 weeks is just unacceptable. And it's a great, heart-warming, crowd-pleasing, apple pie story to boot!

According to this newspaper article dated June 30th the Giants have already signed RHP Brandon Allen, their 18 year old 18th round (#558 overall) draft pick from Milton, Florida - and he's been in Scottsdale working out for over 2 weeks.
http://www.srpressgazette.com/articles/class-10643-bodycopy-giants.html

Money quote:

Allen turned down the first offer from the Giants when they offered him a signing bonus of $110,000 and paying for some college, but the Giants must have wanted him really, really bad. A second offer from the Giants was fattened up as they agreed to pay for tuition, books, fees, along with room and board. The deal was even sweeter as it also included two plane tickets for his parents to come watch him play ball in the Arizona League were he is expected to report later today.

Allen will turn 19 on August 15th. He is a tall (6'6", 180) and lanky, and a very good all-around athlete with good athletic bloodlines (his dad played for the Sacramento Kings in the NBA). He has plenty of room to put on muscle and gain strength in the coming years, and he will benefit greatly from the advanced mechanical tweakings and coaching that the Giants will provide him. He was a very good hitter during his HS career, ran a 6.46 second 60 yard dash as a Junior in HS, and was a star power forward/center on his HS basketball team. Here's a link to an article that highlights his exploits on the basketball court this past Winter:

http://www.psblive.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=1359

After putting in a solid Junior season back in 2009 (he had a 5-2 record with an ERA of 1.74), Allen finally caught the attention of regional scouts in June of 2009. In an All-Star Showcase game he threw his FB up to 91 mph; pitched 3 innings of 1-hit, no-run ball; and worked out of a bases-loaded, no-out jam against a bunch of highly-ranked All-Star high school prospects in Lakeland, Florida. Here's a link to a story describing what happened in the aftermath of that game, and how he came to sign a baseball letter of commitment to Auburn:
http://www.srpressgazette.com/articles/allen-8895-summer-college.html

Here's what the PerfectGame site had to say about him about a year ago, as a 17 year old junior, in June of 2009:

Brandon Allen is a 2010 RHP with a 6'6'', 180 lb. frame from Milton, FL who attends Milton HS. Long limbed athletic build. Tall cross body delivery, throws around core, full arm circle, short stride needs to be lengthened, 3/4's tight release, arm is quick/loose out front. Mid 80's FB to 87 mph, good downward angle, CB shows good spin when released out front, good downward tilt. Outstanding raw speed, 6.46, very athletic for size or any size for that matter. Lots more in arm with delivery adjustments. Also shows hitting skills. Possible position guy. Follow closely. Outstanding student.

Here's what BaseballAmerica.com had to say about Allen after watching him in the Spring HS Showcase games
in Sebring, Florida near the end of May 2010:

Up next for the North team was the 6-foot-6, 190-pound Brandon Allen. Believe it or not, 6-foot-6 is actually small for the Allen family. Brandon's father is Randy Allen, who played college basketball at Florida State and then in the NBA for the Sacramento Kings. Brandon's brother, Adam, is a forward at Florida. Allen used his height well to drive his 88-90 mph fastballs on a downward plane to the plate. Allen mixed in a 74 mph curveball and a couple 80 mph changeups with some drop. He is committed to Auburn.

Unlike the Giants other mid-round HS draftee Austin Southall, Allen is a great student and plans to go to college in the offseasons, with the Giants picking up the tab. Here's an article describing the thought process Allen went through after being drafted by the Giants, but before he decided to sign with them:
http://www.srpressgazette.com/sports/allen-10504-summer-make.html

I couldn't find any videos, but I do have 3 pics linnked to below.
Nice pitching form, but he doesn't have the FFFFFFFFFFFF... face down yet:
http://www.srpressgazette.com/sections/article/gallery/?pic=5&id=10213

I call these 2 pics "white man can jump" - you get a good idea of his athleticism:
http://www.srpressgazette.com/sections/article/gallery/?pic=1&id=9286

http://www.srpressgazette.com/sections/article/gallery/?pic=4&id=9286

Bottom line, this is a great low-risk, high-reward signing for the Giants. IMO, Allen is a very high-upside pitching prospect who has barely begun to realize his full potential. He's grown at least 3 inches in the last 1.5 years, so he's had to deal with getting used to new angles and a new body while pitching in both his junior and senior years. He should gain a lot of strength and stamina over the nexrt 4 years as his height stabilizes and he becomes an adult man. Coming from such a small town and rural county, he hasn't had the best coaching, so he's basically had to get by on his natural talent and athleticism. I expect him to really blossom under the tutelage of the Giants' pitching gurus, and add 3-5 mph in velocity as his body fills in.

The Giants have now signed all of their 1st 20 draft picks, except of Gary Brown (1st rd.), Jarrett Parker (2nd rd.), Mike Kickham (5th rd.), and Andrew Barbosa (15th rd.). I think it's almost certain that they'll announce the signing of Brown, Parker, and Kickham sometime around the signing deadline on August 16th. I don't think they'll sign Babosa, but I don't really care about him, since I think he's a head-case that doesn't really want to be a pro pitcher. Either that or he really hates the idea of playing for the Giants.

With the promising early play of Chuckie Brown in Scottsdale, this signing of Allen, and the rumor of an agreement with Austin Southall my opinion of this draft has gone from bitter disappointment, to guarded optimism. Don't get me wrong, I still think that they missed out on several really good young prospects for the sake of too many low-ceiling college non-prospects, but they do seem to have some young, talented and athletic kids to also work with now.

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Comments

We have too many Brandons in the minors now, it’s going to get confusing. Belt, Crawford, and now Allen – damn that “BH 90210”.

"There ain’t much to being a ballplayer, if you’re a ballplayer." - Honus Wagner

by Fla-Giant on Jul 20, 2010 8:50 PM PDT reply actions

Awesome.

This guy was one of my favorite prospects that we drafted.

Proud father of Mike Krukow (who is more than 3 times my age)
Grab Some Pine, Meat
Still cheering for Kevin Frandsen
John Bowker: One of the 3 best OF's on the Giants roster

by Gobroks on Jul 20, 2010 9:24 PM PDT via mobile reply actions

The only concern Allen had about going pro, was the fact he would have to call the Auburn coaching staff to give them the news.

Many of today’s pampered HS athletes would have just left that phone call for somebody else to handle. He really seems like another one of those nice, decent small-town southern kids that the Giants have struck gold with recently (Cain, Posey, MadBum, and hopefully Wheeler (is Atlanta a “small town”?)). They’re quiet and respectful, but intensely competitive on the diamond.

"There ain’t much to being a ballplayer, if you’re a ballplayer." - Honus Wagner

by Fla-Giant on Jul 20, 2010 9:53 PM PDT reply actions

Along the same lines

"Being his pitching coach I can tell you he has a work ethic beyond belief," said Milton baseball coach George Blake. "He is a great kid to coach and this is a great day for Milton baseball."

"There ain’t much to being a ballplayer, if you’re a ballplayer." - Honus Wagner

by Fla-Giant on Jul 20, 2010 10:06 PM PDT up reply actions

good to hear. sounds like the kind of guy who’s going to work his back end off to get to the big club and produce. congrats to allen and family.

Proud parent of the new dominant pitching sensation out of San Diego State University.

Refocused on baseball. Sharks hockey: torture.

by beat_la_25 on Jul 20, 2010 10:53 PM PDT up reply actions

That, in particular, is very encouraging to hear. Thanks, as always, FlaGiant.

"Row(and) will come out of this. You stay with your guys and he is one of our guys." - Bruce Bochy 05-31-10

"...and with Titanic's transverse bulkheads and watertight doors, it renders this vessel practically unsinkable." - "Shipbuilder" magazine, 1912

by Lyle on Jul 21, 2010 9:05 AM PDT up reply actions

I agree. Your efforts are greatly appreciated, Fla-Giant.

by Wonderful Terrific Monds on Jul 21, 2010 9:02 PM PDT up reply actions

Downs too

but Fred Lewis was not handled well here

proud, yes I said proud, adoptive papa of "Geno" Eugenio Velez

by foothillsfan on Jul 21, 2010 11:12 AM PDT up reply actions

This is good info, Fla-Giant.

You’ve been putting up some great posts lately, very informative and well thought out.

"I wanted to pick a Rockie. But I dislike the Rockies. They're not bona fide." — Jon Miller on the postgame wrap, 7/1/10

by Giant Fan in Singapore on Jul 20, 2010 11:52 PM PDT reply actions

+1

by betterthanbochy on Jul 21, 2010 10:17 AM PDT up reply actions

I just fanshotted this on MLBBonusBaby

Proud father of Mike Krukow (who is more than 3 times my age)
Grab Some Pine, Meat
Still cheering for Kevin Frandsen
John Bowker: One of the 3 best OF's on the Giants roster

by Gobroks on Jul 21, 2010 1:26 AM PDT reply actions

And reinier roibal is in arizona too.

Highly regarded 20 year old pitcher from Cuba the
giants signed in April. Only place I saw it was in the
El Nuevo Heraldo. Supposedly the kid is a real
prospect.

by bradleybear on Jul 21, 2010 1:46 AM PDT reply actions

Yeah, I posted on Roibal’s signing about 3 weeks ago. He just had his first pro appearance in a 1 inning relief stinint a few days back, and I’m excited to hear some eyewitness reports on how he looks on the mound. When you add Roibal and the 6 carribean prospects that landed in Scottsdale this month to Chuckie and Allen (and possibly Southall) it’s easy to imagine that the Giants had a big influx of youth after the draft – even though they didn’t pick many kids in the actual draft itself.

The farm system should be really fun to watch next season. The Giants will have a ton of young, high-upside, live-armed pitchers to populate their rotations in SJ, Augusta, S-K, and Scottsdale, instead of the many older roster-fodder guys that we’ve been seeing tway too much of his year.

"There ain’t much to being a ballplayer, if you’re a ballplayer." - Honus Wagner

by Fla-Giant on Jul 21, 2010 7:47 AM PDT up reply actions

Did someone say something about pie!?!

Oh, well, I suppose that’s cool too.

Nicely done again, Fla-Giant.

I feel prickishly demanding!

I couldn't be prouder of my recent adoptee - Tim Lincecum's dealer. He provides the secret fuel behind both Cy Youngs. Also, he taught Timmy the change-up.

by giantsfansince1981 on Jul 21, 2010 9:51 AM PDT reply actions

That's really cool of the Giants

To pay for school like that. Is that something that happens frequently in situations like this? Also, would he be able to play baseball for Auburn or does “the offseason” mean he goes to school when no baseball is played anywhere? I feel silly not knowing things like this.

These are my principles. If you don't like them, I have others. -Groucho Marx

by RDreamer on Jul 21, 2010 10:20 AM PDT reply actions

I’ll feel silly with you, as I wasn’t sure how this would work. I assume this means he’ll try to get a degree during the offseason. If so, I think that’s pretty cool of him and of the Giants.

I feel prickishly demanding!

I couldn't be prouder of my recent adoptee - Tim Lincecum's dealer. He provides the secret fuel behind both Cy Youngs. Also, he taught Timmy the change-up.

by giantsfansince1981 on Jul 21, 2010 11:01 AM PDT up reply actions

the article was fun, thanks also for the link. AND it gives us several more minor league names, neighbors of Allen’s from Santa Rosa County:
Bobbyt Cassevah, who was called up earlier this year by the Los Angeles Angels.
Caleb Gindl is in Huntsville playing for the Milwaukee Brewers AA farm team
the county seems to be a farming area where vowels are in short supply. They all get plowed under I think.

proud, yes I said proud, adoptive papa of "Geno" Eugenio Velez

by foothillsfan on Jul 21, 2010 11:16 AM PDT up reply actions

No, he’s ineligible for college baseball once he signs a pro contract. However, if for some reason the baseball career doesn’t pan out, he would be eligible to play another college sport (in his case that would likely be basketball). Chris Weinke (and others) have taken that route, before quitting pro baseball and enrolling at Florida State. He ended up starting as the FSU quarterback as a 21 year old Freshman.

To answer your other question, the vast majority of high school kids who are signed by pro ball teams do not write something like this into their contracts. Also, the vast majority never do bother to go to college and get their degrees, even though the vast majority of them never make it to the majors, much less have a prolonged baseball career.

"There ain’t much to being a ballplayer, if you’re a ballplayer." - Honus Wagner

by Fla-Giant on Jul 21, 2010 11:37 AM PDT up reply actions

Didn’t Shawon Dunston just file a grievance against the Cubs for not paying him scholarship money to go back to college as agreed upon in his initial contract?

My Bucardo is better than yours.

A hot August weekday, before a small crowd, when the only thing at stake is the tissue-thin difference between a thing done well and a thing done ill. Insofar as the clutch hitter is not a sportswriter's myth, it is a vulgarity, like a writer who writes only for money.

by Roger on Jul 21, 2010 3:21 PM PDT up reply actions

Of course, he could also play pro baseball and a college sport (other than baseball) simultaneously as has been done many many times by other players. Often enough, in fact, that there are now separate regulations for negotiating contracts with “two-sport” players.

My Bucardo is better than yours.

by Roger on Jul 21, 2010 3:24 PM PDT up reply actions

Right about the pro/college 2-sport angle. However, if the pro sport is baseball, then it makes it almost impossible to have the college sport be anything but football. The NCAA basketball tourney goes almost to the end of March, and no pro team is going to let their employee miss all of Spring Training. Also, no college coach is going to let a player get any significant minutes in his rotation when he knows that he can’t count on him being available for the conference and NCAA tournaments.

With football it works because there’s no conflict between the end of the college season and the bdginning of pro ball. And college coaches will put up with a guy that misses September and the first part of October, if he knows the guy will be available during the critical Oct-Dec times.

"There ain’t much to being a ballplayer, if you’re a ballplayer." - Honus Wagner

by Fla-Giant on Jul 21, 2010 4:54 PM PDT up reply actions

Mostly that’s true, but of course one of the more famous two sport guys was Danny Ainge, who did indeed play basketball at BYU while playing baseball for the Blue Jays. Can’t think of any others, though.

My Bucardo is better than yours.

by Roger on Jul 21, 2010 7:38 PM PDT up reply actions

Hey Pa, Check out this hear Ce-ment pond!

“Allen turned down the first offer from the Giants when they offered him a signing bonus of $110,000 and paying for some college, but the Giants must have wanted him really, really bad. A second offer from the Giants was fattened up as they agreed to pay for tuition, books, fees, along with room and board. The deal was even sweeter as it also included two plane tickets for his parents to come watch him play ball in the Arizona League were he is expected to report later today.”

“really, really bad?” This is just normal business negotiations, you give what you think is a fair offer but you are prepared to give more if asked. I think the Giants would give all their draftees money for college, as it is not that much relative to the bonus, unless they are going to some Ivy League/private school, plus tickets for the folks to check you out playing as a pro. Small price to pay.

It is those overslot deals that is more “really, really bad”as the Giants have typically gone overslot for their early round draft picks, generally, particularly their first round picks.

Nice catch of the story, though.

Adoptive parental unit of Ehire Adrianza.
Godfather of Travis Ishikawa.

"Woo hoo!" - Tim "The Kid" Lincecum
"The objective is that World Series ring" - The Kid
"I think my role here has changed a little bit. I'm counted on a little more." - Posey after hitting 12-24 with 4 homers after Molina trade

by obsessivegiantscompulsive on Jul 23, 2010 4:23 PM PDT reply actions

Allen's pro debut in the AZL - July 29th

Allen made his debut by pitching 1 inning in relief for Scottsdale on Wednesday night. He gave up 1 run on 2 hits and a walk. He started out shaky (nervous?), yielding back-to-back doubles followed by a walk with 1 out. He finished nicely though, by getting a K and a groundout with runners on 2nd and 3rd to close out the inning with no more damage done.

Here’s his stat page:
http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/milb/stats/stats.jsp?pos=P&sid=milb&t=p_pbp&pid=592100

"There ain’t much to being a ballplayer, if you’re a ballplayer." - Honus Wagner

by Fla-Giant on Jul 29, 2010 9:22 AM PDT reply actions