Veteran slugger and two-time All-Star Joey Gallo will now be part of the American League Playoff race after wasting away with the Texas Rangers over the past several years.
Multiple media reports indicate that the 27-year-old Gallo has been traded to the New York Yankees.
This is an absolutely massive move for New York as the team attempts to remain alive in the playoff race amid a season that has been defined by inconsistencies at the plate.
Joey Gallo should more than help in this regard. He’s hitting .223 with 25 homers and 55 RBI on the campaign. The slugger has also walked a league-high 74 times and has seen his strikeout rate plummet compared to previous years.
To put this acquisition into perspective, all Yankees left-handed batters have put up 22 homers in 722 at-bats this season. Needless to say, a move of this ilk was needed for a team that entered Wednesday’s action with a 52-47 record and in third place in the American League East.
The move also comes hours after the Oakland Athletics pulled off their own blockbuster for Starling Marte. Oakland sits ahead of New York in the race for the second wildcard spot in the American League.
Long-term, Joey Gallo is arbitration-eligible next season. This means the Yankees did not simply acquire a rental.
Texas Rangers get massive haul for Joey Gallo
As noted above, Gallo is not simply a rental for the Yankees. That also means that they had to pay a premium to acquire the two-time All-Star.
According to Jeff Passan of ESPN, that includes at least four top-30 prospects within the Yankees farm system.
- Josh Smith, shortstop (#14)
- Ezequiel Duran, second base (#15)
- Trevor Hauver, infielder/outfielder (#23)
- Glenn Otto, pitcher (#28)
Smith and Duran are currently at high Single-A ball. Both are performing extremely well at the plate. Meanwhile, Hauver finds himself at the lower Single-A level and Otto was just recently promoted to Triple-A. He’s pitching to a 7-3 record with a 3.33 ERA in 13 games (12 starts) between two levels.