Jeff Allison Stats & Scouting Report

IP	544
ERA	4.649
WHIP	1.428
BB/9	3.16
SO/9	5.327

Full name Jeffrey M. Allison
Born 11/07/1984 in Lynn, MA
Profile Ht.: 6'2" / Wt.: 195 / Bats: R / Throws: R
School Veterans Memorial
Drafted in the 1st round (16th overall) by the Miami Marlins in 2003 (signed for $1,850,000).

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Allison was the ace of USA Baseball's junior national team that finished third at the World Junior Championship last summer. He had 17 strikeouts in 14 innings, and threw a four-hitter against Venezuela. He has been even more dominating this spring and had the second-highest grade turned in by the Major League Scouting Bureau at one point. Allison was a perfect 5-0, 0.00 with 82 strikeouts in 37 innings. His raw stuff is electric and has made him the top high school pitching prospect in the draft. He has a lean, athletic body with a weak upper half, long lanky arms and muscular legs. He has a no-windup delivery and generates serious arm speed from a three-quarters slot, which enables him to run his fastball up into the 96-97 mph range with nasty movement. He complements his heater with an 86-88 mph tilted slider and an 82-84 mph curve with excellent spin, bite and two-plane break. He shows an occasional 76-77 mph change and does a good job of repeating his delivery and commanding both sides of the plate. Allison has minor mechanical faults, sometimes rushing through his balance point in his delivery, causing his arm to drag. He also lands on a stiff front leg, hyperextending his knee, and has some recoil in his delivery. Scouts say he's cocky, to the point of being difficult to coach at times.

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Organization Prospect Rankings

Allison's travails are well documented, but the 16th overall pick in the 2003 draft went a long way toward re-establishing his career last year. Amid great curiosity and after a 21- month-plus layoff, he made it back to the mound in low Class A by early May. Living at first with Greensboro pitching coach Steve Foster, a youth minister and former big league pitcher, Allison stayed clean and put his past problems with heroin and painkillers behind him. He stayed in the rotation the rest of the year, except for a six-week absence due to a strained muscle in his upper back. By the end of 2005 he was regularly turning in six or seven innings a start. His stuff was down a notch or two from the 97 mph fastball he once flashed, but he still had the big-breaking curve and the mound presence that once inspired comparisons to Josh Beckett. The Marlins will continue to take things slowly with Allison's comeback, but he figures to start 2006 in high Class A.
One of the saddest stories in the minors, Allison plummeted from No. 3 on last year's list after nearly dying from a heroin overdose last summer. Allison sought offseason outpatient treatment for a reliance on the painkiller Oxycontin and reported to spring training late. He stayed about a month then returned home to Massachusetts after reportedly failing multiple drug tests. The heroin episode came a couple of months later, and the Marlins have no idea if he will pitch for them again. When healthy, the talent is obvious. Baseball America's High School Player of the Year as a senior, he signed for $1.85 million. Often compared to Josh Beckett for his stuff, mound demeanor and cocky attitude, Allison had a 93-97 mph fastball and a big-breaking curve in the mid-80s. Should he make it back this year, the Marlins will take things slowly with Allison as they try to reestablish him as a viable professional. A minor bout of shoulder tendinitis cut short his first pro season in 2003.
BA's 2003 High School Player of the Year, Allison went 9-0, 0.00 with 142 strikeouts in 64 innings, allowing just 13 hits, nine walks and one unearned run. He was a top 10 prospect for the draft but fell because of perceived bonus demands. The Marlins took him 16th and signed him for $1.85 million. Often compared to World Series MVP Josh Beckett for his stuff, mound demeanor and cocky attitude, Allison could enjoy a similarly rapid pass through the minors. Allison had the best fastball (92-97 mph with life) and curveball (80-86 with sharp downward break) in the 2003 draft. He also has a tight slider. He throws from a high three-quarters arm slot, which aids his plus natural movement. Allison has broad shoulders, but his upper body needs work. A minor bout with shoulder tendinitis limited his pro debut to three starts. He rarely threw his changeup in high school because no one could hit his first two pitches. Allison should start 2004 in low Class A, with a taste of high Class A likely. If he proves as special as everybody thinks, he might not need more than the 200 minor league innings Beckett got.