The ninth consensus first-team All-American in Mississippi State baseball history, outfielder Tanner Allen added his name to the short list of Mississippi State baseball student-athletes to earn National Player of the Year honors when the American Baseball Coaches Association announced him as the National Player of the Year on Tuesday, June 29.
The award places Allen’s name alongside Will Clark and Brent Rooker as the only other Diamond Dawgs to earn National Player of the Year honors. Clark claimed the Golden Spikes Award in 1985, while Rooker was the Collegiate Baseball Newspaper National Player of the Year in 2017.
The national award gives Mississippi State baseball a national “of the year” award winner in each of the last three seasons and four of the last five. Along with Rooker in 2017, Ethan Small was national pitcher of the year and JT Ginn earned national freshman of the year in 2019 and Christian MacLeod was national freshman of the year in 2020.
The only Power 5 hitter to accumulate 95 hits, 60 runs scored and 60 RBIs on the season, Allen has led the Diamond Dawgs into the College World Series Championship Series. He has reached base safely in 62 of 65 starts this season and been on base multiple times in 44 games so far in 2021.
The SEC Player of the Year, Allen hit .411 in SEC play to lead all hitters and he was the only SEC hitter to rank among the top 10 in average, hits, runs scored and RBIs in conference play. The seventh Diamond Dawg to earn All-America honors in multiple years at MSU, Allen is the first to garner All-America honors at two different positions during his career.
His 96 hits entering Tuesday’s (June 29) game versus Vanderbilt rank tied for No. 10 in a single season at MSU. He currently leads the SEC in hits (96), RBIs (66), triples (5) and batting average (.381) and sits among the top 50 nationally in eight offensive categories. He owns three reached base streaks of 15-plus games in 2021 and carried a career-long 22-game hitting streak and 27-game reached base streak during the season.
On the MSU career charts, Allen ranks among the top 10 Diamond Dawgs in triples (No. 3; 12), (No. 4; 61), hits (No. 9; 277), RBIs (No. 9; 182) and total bases (No. 9; 431). He is one of nine MSU hitters to amass 250 hits, 150 runs scored and 150 RBIs in a career and is the only Bulldog to ever collect 60 doubles, 20 home runs and 10 triples in the maroon and white.
