Although not that big in stature, Jim Allen’s production on the baseball field could hardly go unnoticed. Jim and teammate Monte Dearth turned in All-American seasons in 1989, helping legendary coach Dick Fishbaugh and the Cardinals secure the school’s first Ohio Athletic Conference (OAC) championship in baseball.

Otterbein finished 27-17 overall that spring and a solid 12-4 against the league. Allen led the way with 54 runs batted in (RBI) en route to becoming Otterbein’s all-time leader in the category, as his career record of 189 still stands today.

A centerfielder with great range, Allen also set the school’s home run record (32) that stood for 20 years after he graduated. He finished top-10 at Otterbein in seven other categories, including second in total bases (338), third in runs scored (129) and triples (12), and fifth with a .675 slugging percentage.

He finished with a .371 career batting average, collecting 186 hits over 501 at-bats. Jim was later selected in the 21st round of the Major League Baseball Draft by the St. Louis Cardinals.