Opening Day 2024 will live in infamy. With James Wood and Dylan Crews, both of whom will hopefully be extended soon, waiting down in the minors, the Nationals Opening Day lineup had some shades of the island of misfit toys, with Ildemaro Vargas at 3rd base, Eddie Rosario in center field, Joey Meneses at DH, and of course, Joey Gallo at first base.
A late signing in the offseason, the Gallo move actually had some intrigue but turned out to be miserable for the most part. The former all-star only played in 76 games due to injury, with only 10 home runs, striking out 39.2% of the time, and of course, a batting average under .200 at a career-low .161.
JOEY GALLO 447 FEET FOR HIS FIRST HOME RUN AS A NATIONAL pic.twitter.com/qCRdyrWMZH
— Talkin Nats (@TalkinNats) April 3, 2024
It is hard to believe Gallo was one of the best players in the American League from 2019-2021, accumulating 7.7 fWAR in 280 games mostly with the Rangers, before being traded to the Yankees at the end of 2021.
He was always prone to striking out at an outrageously high clip with his violent swing from the left side but had a knack for getting on base at a high clip, with above-average defense in the outfield, winning back-to-back Gold Gloves from 2020-2021.
JOEY GALLO WITH A CANNON TO SAVE THE GAME FOR THE RANGERS pic.twitter.com/NBL0G7Ir09
— Barstool Sports (@barstoolsports) May 14, 2021
Entering his prime as a dead pull hitter with the New York Yankees and their short porch led to high expectations, but little did most know it would be the beginning of the end.
Gallo struggled mightily with the Yankees, Dodgers, Twins, and Nationals from 2022-2024, never hitting 20 or more home runs, a far cry from the former 40-home-run per-season bat he once had.
For the second consecutive offseason, Gallo struggled to find a job, before settling on a minor league deal with the White Sox.
Gallo entered spring with a good shot to break the 121 loss White Sox’s roster, but after going 2-20 with 11 strikeouts, Gallo was let go.
Gallo quickly went to social media posting a cryptic video that looked like it could be a retirement post, before clarifying his intentions to pitch.
Just to be clear, I will be pitching.
— Joey Gallo (@JoeyGallo24) March 16, 2025
Gallo was a first-round pick out of high school in 2012 after he was named Gatorade Player of the Year in Nevada as a 3rd baseman and pitcher.
Gallo has not appeared on the mound since high school but has a powerful arm. He has made plenty of high light plays in the outfield throwing people out, and began his career in the major leagues at third base before lobbying the Rangers for a move to the outfield.
It would be a long journey back to the Major Leagues for Gallo, but it would be an incredible story as in the likes of former National Rick Ankiel.
The most recent outfielder turned pitcher success story comes from Anthony Gose, who was a major league outfielder with the Toronto Blue Jays and Detroit Tigers slashing .240/.309/.348 from 2012-2016 in 372 games, before resurfacing with Cleveland as a pitcher in 2021 and has made 31 major league appearances since, with a 4.78 ERA and 41 strikeouts in 32 innings flashing a fastball that has been clocked at over 100 mph from the left side.
Best of luck to Joey Gallo in the future, and if this is the last time he has appeared in the big leagues as a hitter, he ends his hitting career as a 2-Time all-star, those 2 gold gloves, and 208 home runs with a .194 career batting average. Hopefully, Elijah Green, who has been compared to Gallo, does not have to become a pitcher down the line as well.