Because in the seventh inning, Allen did an Elly De La Cruz thing on the play of the game in the Dragons’ 7-5 victory over Lansing at Day Air Ballpark.
The Dragons had already scored twice in the seventh to tie the score 5-5. With Allen at third base, Hector Rodriguez at second base, one out and the infield in, Cade Hunter put the ball in play, and unexpected things happened.
Hunter’s bouncer was fielded on the first-base side of the mound by Lansing pitcher Blaze Pontes. He looked at Allen, who froze a few steps off third. Then Pontes turned and threw out Hunter. That was Allen’s cue to break for home just like De La Cruz would do.
Allen was safe with a head-first slide no matter what, but first baseman Will Simpson committed a throwing error that went out of play. And Rodriguez was awarded home for the final two-run margin.
“It was just a read,” Allen said. “I held my ground on third, the guy didn’t move me back too much, and he was just slow in his turn. So as soon as he went to first, instincts kicked in and I took home.”
The De La Cruz comparison was obvious.
“I took that out of his playbook for sure,” Allen said. “I got to play with him a little bit in spring training, and he has that fire on the base paths. I’m always looking for that extra base.”
And the rest of the team is looking for Allen to do things exactly like he did Friday night, including a two-run homer, his eighth this season, to cut an early Lansing lead to 3-2 in the fifth.
“If you haven’t bought stock in Jay Allen right now, you better hurry up because that guy’s special,” teammate Sal Stewart said. “Five tools — what can’t he do on a baseball field?”
A lot of eyes have been on Stewart as well lately. He was named the Reds minor league player of the month in May and hasn’t let up. He tied the game twice Friday. In the fifth, he hit a solo homer, his fifth, to make the score 3-3. In the seventh, after a run scored on an error, Stewart hit a sacrifice fly to make it 5-5 and set the stage for Allen’s dash for home.
“All I said was hang out, hang out, and once the guy turned to throw he made an instinctual play,” Harrison Jr. said. “It did a lot for just our guys’ belief and staying on the grind.”
The offensive grind was needed because for the first time in a few nights the Dragons didn’t get a dominating starting performance. Javi Rivera allowed two runs in seven innings in Wednesday’s win. Johnathan Harmon pitched seven scoreless innings Thursday in the Dragons’ sixth shutout of the season and fourth in 12 games.
Bryce Hubbart allowed only a two-run homer in the sixth to end a no-hit bid in his previous start. But on Friday he walked a man with two outs in the fourth, let another runner on in with a hit and then watched a three-run homer off the bat of Cole Conn. He lasted only 3 2/3 innings.
“From the beginning, he just never had a feel for his heater – he couldn’t throw it where he wanted to,” Harrison Jr. said. “But testament to what those guys are doing, because it was the same deal with (Ryan) Cardona the other day, they didn’t have a feel for some of their pitches. And yet he got us into the fourth.”
And the Dragons, as they have often done this season, found ways to score in the late innings and snag a victory. This one was No. 3 in a row, moved them to 28-27 above .500 for the first time since they were 6-5.
With 11 games left in the first half, the Dragons and the rest of the Midwest League East Division are chasing Lake County (32-23) for a playoff spot. The Captains won again Friday and lead the fourth-place Dragons by four games with 11 to play.
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