Southside pitcher throws left-handed, does everything else right-handed

Walker Allen does pretty much everything right-handed – everything but pitching. In a unique twist, pitching is the only thing the Southside High School senior does left-handed. Allen said he does that  because his grandfather is also a southpaw.

“Growing up, while both of my parents were working, my grandparents would take care of me and my grandpa threw left-handed,” Allen said. “So I just did what he did. The only thing I do left-handed is pitch; everything else I do in my day to day life, I do it right-handed.”

Now in his third season as a starting pitcher, Allen has become an ace for the Mavericks. In his first six starts on the season, he has a 2.20 earned run average while striking out 23 batters in 35 innings.

“My strengths pitching would have to be that I’m going to throw strikes and fill up the zone and I can produce pop outs and ground balls,” Allen said. “But (when I’m) not pitching, I feel like I’m a good leader to the underclassmen and I can contribute a lot defensively.”

Allen utilizes a variety of pitches at his disposal, including a two-seam fastball, a curve ball, cutter and a change-up. Allen, who generally plays first base on days when he’s not pitching, prepared for his senior season by working with a pitching coach in Springdale during the offseason.

“I was working constantly with my pitching coach in Springdale to better my pitches to be more effective during the season,” he said.

Allen said he was pitching very well early in the season, and the rest of the Mavericks followed suit by gaining several victories. One game that really stood out for Allen was an extra-inning win against 6A-West conference rival Bentonville.

“It was a big team win,” he said. “We played 12 innings, and it was the first time we showed people what we could do and weren’t going to give up being down.”

That’s also something else Allen has enjoyed about his senior season with the Mavericks, the camaraderie they have displayed on the field.

“I enjoy that most of my teammates are guys that I have grown up playing with or against and I think that’s makes our team chemistry a whole lot better,” he said. “That has been a big factor in the way we play.”

Baseball has been the only sport Allen has played. Like his ability to pitch left-handed, he learned the sport from his grandfather.

“I started playing baseball at a very young age, but the person who got me into baseball was my grandpa,” Allen said. “He is the reason I’m left-handed and why I have made it this far, he gave me the love and joy for the game. I love how it is the only sport that you can do something below .500 percent and still be great at, and the game has also taught me that even when things don’t go your way, you can still come out on top.”

Allen – who has a 3.6 grade-point average – will continue to play baseball after graduating from Southside. He has signed to play at the University of the Ozarks in nearby Clarksville. He hopes to go to his new team fresh off of a state tournament appearance in his final high school go-round with the Mavericks.

“I want me and my team to win enough games to make the state tournament, which we are on track to do, and I feel very confident about us doing,” he said.