- Joey Gallo
In 2015, Gallo played in 36 games. During his debut, on his first at-bat, Gallo hit his first big league home run. He had 4 RBIs that game, becoming the first Ranger to do so in a debut game. Just a few short days after this impressive outing, Gallo earned his first Golden Sombrero. That was the earliest any Ranger had accomplished this inglorious feat. He had six homers on the season and finished with a batting line of .204/.301/.417. Last season, in 17 games, he managed just one home run. He ended with a .040/.200/.160 line. The club chose to option Gallo to Triple A Round Rock, while adding Josh Hamilton to the roster.
[Blake]
What to do with Joey Gallo? It’s a question that continues to follow this 23-year-old into 2017. He’s a third baseman by trade, but the team has that position locked up. There is no way that the Texas Rangers move future Hall of Famer Adrian Beltre for the likes of Joey Gallo. He has experience in the outfield, but again, those positions seemed to be filled. Between Jurickson Profar, Carlos Gomez and Shin-Soo Choo, there isn’t a place for Gallo. Even Nomar Mazara and Ryan Rua will likely see time at one of the corners before Gallo. What’s left for this southpaw hitter?
The designated hitter role seemed to be a decent place to play Gallo, at the start of the off-season at least. Then Mike Napoli was signed. While the plan is to start Napoli at first base, he could also see time at the DH slot. In those instances, Ryan Rua would likely cover first. In fact, Joey Gallo only appears on the current Texas Rangers depth chart twice. And that’s third in line to cover first base, and fourth in line to cover third base. It seems that there is no home for Joey Gallo.
During Spring Training, there is only one thing for Gallo to do. He has to earn a spot on the roster. If he can’t impress manager Jeff Banister, Gallo may be stuck in the Minor League system for good.
[Kenny2]