When the Atlanta Braves acquired Nick Allen, the organization knew not to expect much from his bat. When he supplanted Orlando Arcia, at the beginning of the season, the motivation was likely more Arcia taking a step back defensively than it was Allen becoming an offensive standout.
But when Brian Snitker and the Braves decided to make him the starting shortstop, they likely didn't expect that nearly five months later, Nick Allen would be chasing history.
Nick Allen could etch his name in Braves history by not homering
Since Integration (post-1947), homerless players hardly get a chance to get a full season's worth of plate appearances. In fact, the Braves have only had two hitters compile enough to be a qualified hitter (502 PAs in a 162 game season).
In 1974, Craig Robinson went to the plate 506 times and slashed .230/.280/.265 while never parking a ball over the fence. Eight years earlier, Woody Woodward had 516 homerless plate appearances, though he had a slightly more respectable .264/.323/.327 slashline.
Heading into Friday's game against the Cleveland Guardians, Nick Allen had 366 plate appearances without a homer. In the last 30 years, only Walt Weiss had more plate appearances in a Braves uniform without putting a ball over the fence.
Nick Allen's pathway to be a qualified hitter is challenging. The shortstop was nine plate appearances shy of being a qualified hitter despite being the full-time starter since roughly the first week of the season.
Allen has hit at the bottom of the order all season and the Braves have been quick to pinch-hit for his spot, which has led to him falling below the qualified mark.
However Allen has made up some ground in the last week, with six straight four-plate appearance games. If the Braves slick-handed shortstop can continue this pace, he might be able to set a new record for the Braves post integration.
Nick Allen hasn't come particularly close to homering either. He hasn't barreled a single pitch and the furthest he's hit the ball was 382 feet to dead center against the Twins on April 18. This ball didn't even reach the warning track.
While we're rooting for Allen to park one over the fence this season, we'll also be watching with morbid curiosity to see if he can surpass Woodward's 516 homerless plate appearances