A can-miss power prospect
Rangers slugger Gallo’s home run potential compensates for frequent strikeouts.
— Joey Gallo doesn’t get cheated in the batter’s box.
The Texas Rangers’ top minor league prospect, who’s now playing for the Triple-A Round Rock Express, is part of a new wave of young sluggers who come with a grip-it and rip-it mentality. He swings big. If he connects, the ball goes a long way. If he misses, it’s just another strike or strikeout.
“This is a different kind of generation,” the 21-year-old Gallo said Monday before he had a two-run double in a 6-4 victory over Nashville at Dell Diamond. “There are going to be more strikeouts, and some people might not like that, but the reward is pretty amazing, to see these guys hit the ball out of the park.
“It’s a really exciting time. I defifinitely feel a part of some-
thing special. You look at how power (hitting) has declined (in baseball). It gets kind of boring to watch games like that, but it’s fun seeing guys like Bryce Harper, Kris Bryant, Giancarlo Stanton, Carlos Correa and Joc Pederson hit the ball out of the ballpark.
“When those guys come to the plate, you stop and watch. They make the game interesting for the casual fan.”
Gallo, a 6-foot-5, 230-pound third baseman/outfielder from Las Vegas, ranks as the game’s No. 6 overall prospect, according to Baseball America.
After posting back-toback 40-home run seasons in the lower minor leagues, he was promoted to the Rangers, straight from Double-A, in early June.
In his major league debut, he was 3 for 5 with a 430-foot, upper-deck home run. In his second game, he had a 439-foot drive.
Gallo later hit a 439foot homer off Clayton Kershaw that was the second-longest the Dodgers’ Cy Young ace had ever allowed. His 461foot home run June 13 against the Twins was the fourth-longest homer in the history of Globe Life Park.
“Joey has the kind of raw power you seldom see,” said Mike Daly, the Rangers’ senior director of minor league operations.
Gallo also strikes out in massive quantities: 172 times in 2013 and 179 in 2014. With the Rangers, he struck out 43 times in 87 at-bats as his average slumped to .218, and he was sent to Round Rock a week ago when Josh Hamilton returned for Texas.
With the Express, he’s struck out only four times in 24 at-bats, although his average was .208 with one home run and four RBIs going into Tuesday night’s game against the Sounds.
In the majors, the lefty-hitting Gallo faced aces Chris Sale and Sonny Gray twice and stood in against Zack Greinke as well as Kershaw.
“It’s a little tough, getting up there and facing Cy Young Award winners right out of the gate,” Gallo said, “but in the long run, it will make me better.
“I know I am far from a finished product. I had games in the majors where every swing was there. Then the next game I couldn’t find it. I’m down here in Round Rock to get consistency, develop the same swing path, stance, approach. If that means I’m here for a week, a month, (till) the end of the year, I’ll do whatever it takes.
“I want to go up there and be an impact player, not just kind of feel my way.”
Express hitting coach Justin Mashore said Gallo “needs to let the game come to him. When the mental side matches up to the physical, he’ll find the consistency he needs.”
The Rangers know Gallo will always strike out a lot, but they want to see a steady run producer who hits .250 or .260 and takes his share of walks.
“We love his power stroke and don’t want to hold him back,” Daly said, “but there are times you need to put the ball in play. Joey needs refinement, work on his twostrike approach and to improve against lefties. I think Joey has the desire to be a complete hitter, not just a home run guy.
“He’s already played several positions for us, so we know he can adapt. We like his demeanor. He’s not scared of the stage or afraid of the big moment.”
Gallo prefers to play third base, but the outfield is growing on him.
“It’s actually fun out there,” he said. “At third base, you only have a little bit of room to throw and have to be real accurate. In the outfield, you can really let loose, and I have a pretty good arm. For me being a big guy, I have a lot more room to roam out there. At third, I have to play like a short guy, compact. At 6-5, it’s tough to be compact. Out there, my size feels good. Either way, I’m happy. I’ll keep playing both, and we’ll see what happens.”
Daly credits Gallo’s bat speed, torque, leverage and lower-body strength for his powerful swing. Gallo isn’t quite sure how it all blended together.
“I’ve always wondered what the answer is,” he said. “I’ve been able to hit the ball farther than most people since I was a little kid. It’s something God blessed me with.”
Now he’s looking to put on a power-hitting show for Express fans.
“I like it here with the ballpark, the fans; there’s a lot of energy. I just wish the wind would blow out to right field a little more,” Gallo said.
Mashore said his baby bull doesn’t need any help.
“Yeah, right, the wind,” he said, smiling. “I tease him and tell him (the left-handed) Jared Hoying hit 26 homers here last year. The wind or the elements aren’t going to stop his stuff.
“When he hits the ball, Yellowstone Park can’t hold him.”