Nick Allen

Allen almost earned an opening day roster spot but began in Triple-A Las Vegas. Soon, the rookie made his MLB debut, then shuttled between the majors and minors until late June, then played regularly the rest of the season. The slick-fielding infielder played both sides of the keystone, spending a more time at shortstop which is where he's earmarked for the upcoming campaign. Allen is a defense-first player with good contact skills, but he's not patient, nor does he hit the ball with much authority as his 84-mph average exit velocity indicates. Allen has speed but stole only three bases. If his defense weren't superb, he'd be a candidate to platoon as the righty swinger had much better splits against lefties. From a fantasy perspective, the fact he'll play a lot is detrimental, since his limited counting stats won't be enough to mitigate the batting average damage. Read Past Outlooks