Texas Rangers outfielder/first baseman Joey Gallo is known for hitting home runs. For the second consecutive year, he had more homers than singles.
Joey Gallo may be one of the greatest examples of the Three True Outcomes of any hitter in baseball right now. The Texas Rangers outfielder/first baseman is known for his tremendous power and majestic home runs, but is also known for his tendency to resemble a turnstile. Yet, no matter how often he swings and misses, Gallo has an above average walk rate, allowing him to be far more than a player who occasionally puts a ball into the stratosphere.
While there have been other Three True Outcome players in the past, they would occasionally do something other than hit a home run. There would be base hits, little singles that would fall in between outfielders or just over an infielder’s head. Little jam shots that the batter would be strong enough to muscle into play, leading to a quiet base hit.
And then, there was Gallo. Last season, he was more likely to hit a home run than to get a simple base hit. Of his 103 hits last season, Gallo hit 40 home runs. He also hit only 38 singles last year, a ridiculously low number.
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This is not the first time that Gallo has had more homers than singles. He performed the same trick last season, as he hit 41 homers and only 32 singles. Perhaps it is not a surprise that, over his career, Gallo has 88 homers, and only 90 singles, in 1262 plate appearances. Also, if one really wanted to, one could say this was the third consecutive season Gallo had such a performance, as his only hit in 2016 was a homer.
It is true that the Rangers do not pay Gallo to hit singles, but instead to put baseballs into orbit. However, he is only so dangerous if he is not making contact, as his 403 strikeouts over his last 1109 plate appearances can attest to. The odd single here or there could be beneficial.
That just is not what Gallo is as a player. He will sell out for those tape measure bombs, awing the crowd with his highlight reel home runs. Gallo will also swing and miss enough to power wind turbines across the state of Texas. That is just par for the course. But if there is one thing he is almost guaranteed not to do, it would be to get a base hit.
Texas Rangers slugger Joey Gallo is the epitome of the Three True Outcomes. Even a paltry base hit is beyond his usual expectations.