Former Martinsville Mustang, Austin Allen, made his Major League debut May 11 for the San Diego Padres. Allen entered as a pinch hitter in the ninth and drew a key walk in the Padres 4-3 walkoff victory over the Colorado Rockies.

Allen was drafted in the fourth round of the 2015 MLB Draft by the Padres out of the Florida Institute of Technology. The catcher held a career .289 batting average to go along with 102 doubles and 60 home runs across 432 games at the minor league level. With an injury to the Padres Francisco Mejia, Allen was called up in his place from Triple-A El Paso. After his debut pinch-walk on May 11, he earned his first career start on May 12 while also notching his first career hit.

Playing 40 games for Martinsville in 2013, Allen finished the season as the team’s second leading hitter holding a .291 batting average with 10 doubles, one triple and one home run. Allen marks the 123rd all-time former CPL player to make their major league debut and the fifth all-time for the Martinsville franchise.

About Coastal Plain League: 

The Coastal Plain League is the nation’s premier summer collegiate baseball league. Heading into its 23rd season in 2019, the CPL features 16 franchises playing in Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina and Virginia. To date, the CPL has had over 1,450 alumni drafted and 123 alums – including 2017 ALCS MVP, 2017 World Series champion, 2011 AL MVP and Cy Young award winner Justin Verlander, as well as 2017 NLCS MVP Chris Taylor – make their Major League debut. For more information on the Coastal Plain League, please visit the league website at www.coastalplain.com, and be sure to follow us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Snapchat @CPLBaseball.