Rod Allen
Encyclopedia
Roderick Bernet "Rod" Allen (born October 5, 1959 in Los Angeles, California
) is a baseball analyst, currently for the Detroit Tigers
on Fox Sports Detroit
. He also analyzes for other games on Fox Saturday Baseball when the Tigers don't play on Fox Sports Detroit. His former positions include analyst for the Arizona Diamondbacks
, and before that a baseball player, and later a coach.
in the sixth round of the 1977 Major League Baseball Draft. He enjoyed a brief stint with the Seattle Mariners
in 1983. He was 23 years old when he made his major league debut on April 7, 1983. He hit .296 in 27 at bats during a 15 game stint as an outfielder
and designated hitter
with the World Champion Detroit Tigers in 1984
. He enjoyed another brief stint in the majors with the Cleveland Indians
in 1988. Allen spent the last three years of his playing career with the Hiroshima Carp in Japan's Central League. He hit a pair of home run
s against Seibu Lions
in the 1991 Japan Series
and set a Japanese regular season record with four home runs in four consecutive at bats during his time in the league. He is infamous for charging the mound after Kazuhiko Daimon from the Yokohama Taiyo Whales
hit him in the back with a pitch, and subsequently chasing the pitcher across the entire field with both teams' benches in tow.
organization from 1992 through 1995. In 1994 and 1995, he was the hitting coach for the Kane County Cougars
, the Marlins Single-A affiliate in the Midwest League
. Some of the notable players he coached include Mike Redmond
, Kevin Millar
, and Luis Castillo. During his time in the Marlins organization, Allen worked under Dave Dombrowski
, who would later become the Tigers President, CEO, and General Manager.
as a television (Fox Sports Arizona) and radio
(KTAR
) analyst. He served as the color commentator
on the Diamondbacks radio broadcasts during the 2001
postseason, including the World Series
win against the New York Yankees
.
does play-by-play. Allen won Michigan Emmys in 2006 and 2007 for his analysis of Detroit Tigers baseball. As a former hitting coach, he provides expert analysis of hitters' swings and batting stances.
Rod is a longtime member of the Detroit Sports Broadcasters Association founded in 1948 by legendary Tigers broadcaster Ty Tyson
.
in the 12th round of the 2004 Major League Baseball Draft after a collegiate career at Arizona State University
. He played the 2004 season with the Staten Island Yankees
in the New York-Penn League
, and he is currently on the roster of the Class A Winston-Salem Warthogs
. Andrew was selected by the Arizona Diamondbacks in the 43rd round of the 2007 Major League Baseball Draft. He attended Desert Vista High School
in Phoenix, Arizona
.
Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles , with a population at the 2010 United States Census of 3,792,621, is the most populous city in California, USA and the second most populous in the United States, after New York City. It has an area of , and is located in Southern California...
) is a baseball analyst, currently for the Detroit Tigers
Detroit Tigers
The Detroit Tigers are a Major League Baseball team located in Detroit, Michigan. One of the American League's eight charter franchises, the club was founded in Detroit in as part of the Western League. The Tigers have won four World Series championships and have won the American League pennant...
on Fox Sports Detroit
Fox Sports Detroit
Fox Sports Detroit , is a regional sports network that covers local sports teams in the state of Michigan, mostly those in the Metro Detroit area. It is an owned and operated affiliate of Fox Sports Net...
. He also analyzes for other games on Fox Saturday Baseball when the Tigers don't play on Fox Sports Detroit. His former positions include analyst for the Arizona Diamondbacks
Arizona Diamondbacks
The Arizona Diamondbacks are a professional baseball team based in Phoenix. They play in the West Division of Major League Baseball's National League. From 1998 to the present, they have played in Chase Field...
, and before that a baseball player, and later a coach.
Playing career
Allen was selected by the Chicago White SoxChicago White Sox
The Chicago White Sox are a Major League Baseball team located in Chicago, Illinois.The White Sox play in the American League's Central Division. Since , the White Sox have played in U.S. Cellular Field, which was originally called New Comiskey Park and nicknamed The Cell by local fans...
in the sixth round of the 1977 Major League Baseball Draft. He enjoyed a brief stint with the Seattle Mariners
Seattle Mariners
The Seattle Mariners are a professional baseball team based in Seattle, Washington. Enfranchised in , the Mariners are a member of the Western Division of Major League Baseball's American League. Safeco Field has been the Mariners' home ballpark since July...
in 1983. He was 23 years old when he made his major league debut on April 7, 1983. He hit .296 in 27 at bats during a 15 game stint as an outfielder
Outfielder
Outfielder is a generic term applied to each of the people playing in the three defensive positions in baseball farthest from the batter. These defenders are the left fielder, the center fielder, and the right fielder...
and designated hitter
Designated hitter
In baseball, the designated hitter rule is the common name for Major League Baseball Rule 6.10, an official position adopted by the American League in 1973 that allows teams to designate a player, known as the designated hitter , to bat in place of the pitcher each time he would otherwise come to...
with the World Champion Detroit Tigers in 1984
1984 World Series
The 1984 World Series began on October 9 and ended on October 14, 1984. The American League champion Detroit Tigers played against the National League champion San Diego Padres, with the Tigers winning the series four games to one....
. He enjoyed another brief stint in the majors with the Cleveland Indians
Cleveland Indians
The Cleveland Indians are a professional baseball team based in Cleveland, Ohio. They are in the Central Division of Major League Baseball's American League. Since , they have played in Progressive Field. The team's spring training facility is in Goodyear, Arizona...
in 1988. Allen spent the last three years of his playing career with the Hiroshima Carp in Japan's Central League. He hit a pair of home run
Home run
In baseball, a home run is scored when the ball is hit in such a way that the batter is able to reach home safely in one play without any errors being committed by the defensive team in the process...
s against Seibu Lions
Seibu Lions
The are a professional baseball team in Japan's Pacific League based west of Tokyo in Tokorozawa, Saitama. Before 1979, they were based in Fukuoka in Kyushu. The team is owned by a subsidiary of Prince Hotels, which in turn is owned by the Seibu Group...
in the 1991 Japan Series
Japan Series
, or is the annual championship series in Nippon Professional Baseball, the top baseball league in Japan. It is a seven-game series between the winning clubs of the league's two circuits, the Central League and the Pacific League....
and set a Japanese regular season record with four home runs in four consecutive at bats during his time in the league. He is infamous for charging the mound after Kazuhiko Daimon from the Yokohama Taiyo Whales
Yokohama BayStars
The are a professional baseball team in the Japanese Central League. Home field is the Yokohama Stadium, located in central Yokohama. The clubhouse is located near the stadium....
hit him in the back with a pitch, and subsequently chasing the pitcher across the entire field with both teams' benches in tow.
Coaching career
Prior to his work as a broadcaster, Allen spent four seasons as a hitting instructor in the Florida MarlinsFlorida Marlins
The Miami Marlins are a professional baseball team based in Miami, Florida, United States. Established in 1993 as an expansion franchise called the Florida Marlins, the Marlins are a member of the Eastern Division of Major League Baseball's National League. The Marlins played their home games at...
organization from 1992 through 1995. In 1994 and 1995, he was the hitting coach for the Kane County Cougars
Kane County Cougars
The Kane County Cougars are a Class A minor league baseball team, affiliated with the Kansas City Royals, that plays in the Midwest League. Their home games are played in Geneva, Illinois, about 35 miles west of Chicago....
, the Marlins Single-A affiliate in the Midwest League
Midwest League
The Midwest League is a Class-A minor league baseball league which operates in the Midwestern United States.-History:Six teams – the Belleville Stags, the Centralia Cubs, the Marion Indians, the Mattoon Indians or East Frankfort White Sox, the Mount Vernon Braves, and the West Frankfort...
. Some of the notable players he coached include Mike Redmond
Mike Redmond
Michael Patrick Redmond is a former Major League Baseball catcher.Redmond graduated from Gonzaga Preparatory School in 1989. He attended Gonzaga University. Mike and his wife Michele have two sons.Redmond made his Major League debut with the Florida Marlins on May 31, 1998...
, Kevin Millar
Kevin Millar
Kevin Charles Millar is an American former professional baseball first baseman and current analyst for MLB Network and New England Sports Network. Millar played college baseball at Lamar University in Beaumont, Texas, where he continues to reside in the off-season. Millar is the nephew of former...
, and Luis Castillo. During his time in the Marlins organization, Allen worked under Dave Dombrowski
Dave Dombrowski
David Dombrowski is the current president, CEO, and general manager of the Detroit Tigers of Major League Baseball.-Chicago White Sox:...
, who would later become the Tigers President, CEO, and General Manager.
Arizona Diamondbacks
From 1998-2002 he spent five seasons with the Arizona DiamondbacksArizona Diamondbacks
The Arizona Diamondbacks are a professional baseball team based in Phoenix. They play in the West Division of Major League Baseball's National League. From 1998 to the present, they have played in Chase Field...
as a television (Fox Sports Arizona) and radio
Radio
Radio is the transmission of signals through free space by modulation of electromagnetic waves with frequencies below those of visible light. Electromagnetic radiation travels by means of oscillating electromagnetic fields that pass through the air and the vacuum of space...
(KTAR
KTAR (AM)
KTAR is the callsign for a radio station in Phoenix, Arizona. It airs programming from ESPN Radio, in addition to KTAR-acquired broadcast rights for local teams...
) analyst. He served as the color commentator
Color commentator
A color commentator is a sports commentator who assists the play-by-play announcer, often by filling in any time when play is not in progress. The color analyst and main commentator will often exchange comments freely throughout the broadcast, when the play-by-play announcer is not describing the...
on the Diamondbacks radio broadcasts during the 2001
2001 in baseball
-Major League Baseball:*Regular Season Champions*World Series Champion - Arizona Diamondbacks*Postseason - October 9 to November 4Click on any series score to link to that series' page....
postseason, including the World Series
2001 World Series
-Game 1:Saturday, October 27, 2001 at Bank One Ballpark in Phoenix, ArizonaArizona showed no fear and chased Yankees starter Mike Mussina after just three innings. The Yankees gave up five unearned runs and the Diamondbacks rode Curt Schilling's seven strong innings to a 9–1 rout...
win against the New York Yankees
New York Yankees
The New York Yankees are a professional baseball team based in the The Bronx, New York. They compete in Major League Baseball in the American League's East Division...
.
Detroit Tigers
Currently, Allen is the regular color commentator on Detroit Tigers telecasts for Fox Sports Detroit. The 2011 baseball season is Allen's ninth season of broadcasting Tigers games, while Mario ImpembaMario Impemba
Mario Impemba is an American sportscaster, currently the TV voice of the Detroit Tigers and the radio and TV voice of the Oakland Golden Grizzlies men's basketball team.-Early life:...
does play-by-play. Allen won Michigan Emmys in 2006 and 2007 for his analysis of Detroit Tigers baseball. As a former hitting coach, he provides expert analysis of hitters' swings and batting stances.
Rod is a longtime member of the Detroit Sports Broadcasters Association founded in 1948 by legendary Tigers broadcaster Ty Tyson
Ty Tyson
Edwin L. "Ty" Tyson was an American sports broadcaster and radio play-by-play announcer.-Early life:Tyson was born in Phillipsburg, Pennsylvania and he attended Penn State University. As a young man, he played ball and acted in nearby Tyrone, Pennsylvania. While acting in a play, he met another...
.
Fox Saturday Baseball
In addition to his work for the Diamondbacks and Tigers, Allen does color commentary for to Fox Saturday Baseball, including game involving the Tigers.Family life
Allen and his wife, Adrian, have four children: Rhonda, 31; Rod, Jr., 25; Andrew, 18; and Rachel, 16. The Allens live in the Phoenix, Arizona area. Rod, Jr. was selected by the New York YankeesNew York Yankees
The New York Yankees are a professional baseball team based in the The Bronx, New York. They compete in Major League Baseball in the American League's East Division...
in the 12th round of the 2004 Major League Baseball Draft after a collegiate career at Arizona State University
Arizona State University
Arizona State University is a public research university located in the Phoenix Metropolitan Area of the State of Arizona...
. He played the 2004 season with the Staten Island Yankees
Staten Island Yankees
The Staten Island Yankees are a minor league baseball team, located in the New York City borough of Staten Island. Nicknamed the "Baby Bombers," the Yankees are a Short-Season A classification affiliate of the New York Yankees and play in the New York - Penn League at Richmond County Bank Ballpark...
in the New York-Penn League
New York - Penn League
The New York – Penn League is a minor league baseball league which operates in the northeastern United States. It is classified as a "Short-Season A" league; its season starts in June, after major-league teams have signed their amateur draft picks to professional contracts, and ends in early...
, and he is currently on the roster of the Class A Winston-Salem Warthogs
Winston-Salem Warthogs
The Winston-Salem Dash is a minor league baseball team in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, USA. They are a Class High-A team in the Carolina League and have been a farm team of the Chicago White Sox since 1997...
. Andrew was selected by the Arizona Diamondbacks in the 43rd round of the 2007 Major League Baseball Draft. He attended Desert Vista High School
Desert Vista High School
Desert Vista High School is located in the Ahwatukee neighborhood of Phoenix, Arizona, was established in 1996, and is a part of the Tempe Union High School District.-Academics:...
in Phoenix, Arizona
Phoenix, Arizona
Phoenix is the capital, and largest city, of the U.S. state of Arizona, as well as the sixth most populated city in the United States. Phoenix is home to 1,445,632 people according to the official 2010 U.S. Census Bureau data...
.