Neil Allen
From The Met Wiki
Neil Allen was a pitcher for the Mets from 1979 to 1983. Primarily a reliever, he pitched in 223 games and recorded 69 saves with the team. Allen had 25 wins and a 3.54 earned run average as a Met.
Allen pitched 99 innings for the Mets in his ’79 rookie season. He won six games and struck out 65 batters during the year. Neil recorded his first major league win in the Mets’ 8-7 victory over the Cardinals in 11 innings at Shea Stadium on May 20. He pitched a scoreless 10th inning to pick up the win in a 4-3 Mets triumph over the Dodgers on July 11 at Shea. Allen got the first save of his career in the Mets’ 6-4 win over the Cubs at Shea on July 28. He pitched three and one-third scoreless innings for a save in a 3-2 Mets victory on August 4 at Montreal. Neil also had two scoreless innings pitched to notch a save in the Mets’ 8-7 win at St. Louis on September 29.
In 1980, Allen became the Mets’ prime relief pitcher. He led the team with 22 saves in 59 game appearances. In the season opener on April 10, Neil recorded a save with two scoreless innings as the Mets defeated the Cubs, 5-2, at Shea. He had four strikeouts in three scoreless innings and got a save in a 5-3 Mets victory at Atlanta on May 16. Allen pitched three innings and got the win in a 6-5 Mets triumph over the Pirates on June 7 at Shea. He struck out three batters for a save in the Mets’ 2-1 win over the Braves at Shea on July 29. Neil recorded saves in four consecutive games pitched from August 4 to August 12. He was also the winning pitcher in the Mets’ 5-3 victory over the Astros on August 2 at Shea.
Neil changed his uniform number from 46 to 13 before the start of the 1981 season. This made him the first player in team history to wear #13 on a regular basis. The switch proved to be of good luck for Allen as he won 7 games to tie for the team lead with Pat Zachry and posted a career-best 2.97 ERA in the strike-shortened season. At Chicago on April 9, Neil pitched the final three innings for the save as the Mets came out with a 2-0 win in the season opener. He got the win in a 7-4 Mets victory over the Dodgers at Shea on May 9. Allen got a save in the Mets’ 3-1 win on June 7 at Houston. He pitched three shutout innings for the win in a 7-4 Mets triumph in 10 innings at Chicago on August 12. Neil also pitched the final two innings to get the win in the Mets’ 7-6 victory over the Cardinals on September 20 at Shea.
Allen led the Mets with 19 saves in 1982. He pitched 64 and two-thirds innings and struck out 59 batters for the season. Neil got a save in the Mets’ 5-2 win over the Phillies in the home opener at Shea on April 13. In eight appearances from May 13 to June 6, he recorded seven saves and one win. Allen was the winning pitcher in the Mets’ 3-2 triumph over the Pirates at Shea on June 9. He got the win in a 4-3 Mets victory on July 24 at San Diego. Neil recorded five strikeouts and got a save in the Mets’ 7-3 win over the Pirates in the second game of a doubleheader at Pittsburgh on August 6.
In 1983, Allen made four starts among his 21 games with the Mets. He had two wins and two saves in his final season with the team. At Shea on April 7, Neil got a save in the Mets’ 6-2 win over the Phillies. He recorded his final save as a Met in the team’s 7-5 victory over the Pirates in the second game of a doubleheader at Shea on April 20. Allen pitched four impressive innings of one-hit ball in the Mets’ 10-5 win over the Reds on May 8 at Shea. As a starter, he pitched five innings and got the win in the Mets’ 6-2 triumph at Pittsburgh on May 14. Neil’s last win as a member of the Mets was a complete game six-hit shutout for a 4-0 Mets victory over the Dodgers on May 20 at Shea.
On June 15, 1983, Allen and Rick Ownbey were traded to the Cardinals for Keith Hernandez. He continued to pitch in the major leagues for six more years. Neil ended his career with the Cleveland Indians in 1989.
