He earned Pac-10 Player of the Week honors for February 4–10, 2003, after his 7-for-17 (.412) effort with two doubles, a grand slam and five runs batted in (RBI) at San Francisco and versus Loyola Marymount.

As a hitter, Craig showed power at all levels of the Cardinal farm system, hitting 76 home runs in a three and one-half season span between 2006 and 2010 that comprised the bulk of his minor league playing time.

[9] His 21 home runs in an environment of primarily humid air and large ballparks brought notice as one of the top minor league hitters.

Despite the defensive transitions, his hitting remained steady as he posted a .921 on-base plus slugging percentage with the AAA Memphis Redbirds.

His consistent hitting and increased positional coverage prompted Craig to be named Cardinals system Player of the Year.

[8] The next two seasons, he made 19 more appearances at Memphis, Springfield and Palm Beach, accumulating 20 hits in 69 at-bats with four home runs and 14 RBI.

[8] Allen Craig made the Cardinals big-league club out of spring training in 2010 and appeared in his first MLB game on April 8.

[14] One month later, he hit his third home run in a 7–1 defeat of the Chicago Cubs on September 24 in support of Adam Wainwright's bid for his first 20-win season.

[17] In June, after batting .336 with 23 RBI in 107 at-bats, he suffered a small knee cap fracture against the Houston Astros by running into the wall tracking a fly ball in right field.

[19] He ended the regular season with a .315 batting average, 15 doubles, 11 home runs, 40 RBI, and a .555 slugging percentage in 75 games and 219 PA.[12] The Cardinals made the playoffs that year.

[20] In the World Series, Craig debuted in Game 1 by hitting a two-out, go-ahead pinch-hit single off Texas Rangers' pitcher Alexi Ogando's fastball.

On that single, he joined Dusty Rhodes, Del Unser and Hal McRae as the only players to collect pinch-hit RBI in three consecutive postseason at bats.

He also joined Duke Snider and Amos Otis as the only hitters with the go-ahead hit in the sixth inning or later in consecutive World Series games.

[21] For the series, Craig appeared in all seven games and collected five hits in 19 at-bats (.263 batting average), three home runs and five RBI for a .737 slugging percentage.

[19] Despite his strong 2011 performance and World Series exploits, new manager Mike Matheny assigned Craig the role of utility player in the outset of 2012, with the likes of veterans Carlos Beltrán, Berkman, and Holliday already stationed at first base and in the outfield corners.

[23][27] After hitting five home runs in a seven-game stretch, injury quickly struck again when he pulled a hamstring in a game against the San Francisco Giants on May 18 and landed back on the 15-day DL.

[28] Craig was back in action on June 1, and three days later, his tiebreaking two-run home run against the Mets allowed the Cardinals to end a five-game losing streak with a 5–4 win.

[32] With his team facing a 5–4 deficit, Craig belted the game-winning grand slam against the division rival Reds on August 26.

[33] He was also batting .452 with runners in scoring position – again leading the Major Leagues – and it was the third-highest of all time for a single season, after George Brett (.469, 1980) and Tony Gwynn (.459, 1997).

Ready as a hitter in time for the World Series against the Boston Red Sox, Matheny at first excluded him from defense as the injury was not fully healed.

With the scored tied 4–4 in the bottom of the ninth, Cardinals center fielder Jon Jay hit a ground ball off pitcher Koji Uehara toward second baseman Dustin Pedroia, who threw the ball home to catcher Jarrod Saltalamacchia to easily tag Yadier Molina out attempting to score.

Daniel Nava recovered the ball and threw it back to home plate long before Craig would have successfully scored.

Due to being tripped, umpire Jim Joyce awarded Craig home plate when he called an obstruction on Middlebrooks, giving the Cardinals a 5–4 walk-off victory.

[44] On July 31, 2014, Craig was traded along with Joe Kelly to the Red Sox in exchange for John Lackey and prospect Corey Littrell.

[45] Upon being inserted into the Red Sox lineup, Craig struggled mightily towards the last two months of the season, hitting only .128 while striking out 36 times.

[51] On January 30, 2024, it was announced that Craig would assume a role that will see him interact with the MLB team and minor league affiliates as an assistant.

In spite of the challenge to categorize his defensive abilities, his versatility and athleticism has allowed him to play at all positions in the major leagues except pitcher, shortstop, and catcher.

[53] According to former Cardinals player development executive Jeff Luhnow and Memphis Redbirds manager Ron Warner, Craig's arm, range and footwork proved problematic for third base.

Further, with an inefficient, semi-sidearm throwing motion that he could not resolve, Craig relied on his innate strength to compensate for time lost.

[22][57] Torty, whom he has had since a hatchling, gained notoriety and a cult following through a vicarious Twitter account and has since served as an informal mascot for the Cardinals.