As expected, the New York Yankees found a new team for Joey Gallo before Tuesday’s trade deadline. The Yankees have traded Gallo to the Los Angeles Dodgers for Double-A pitching prospect Clayton Bitter, Jim Bowden of CBS Sports HQ has confirmed.
Gallo, 29 and an impending free agent, joined the Yankees at last year’s trade deadline and has been one of the worst hitters in baseball ever since. Always a low average/high strikeout hitter, Gallo posted a .159/.291/.368 line with 25 home runs and a 38.7 percent strikeout rate in 501 plate appearances in pinstripes. He has been relegated to bench duty for the past several weeks.
“I went through a lot and I really had to question myself a lot. My confidence was damaged. I would say I hit rock bottom for the big leagues.” Gallo recently spoke to NJ.com about his tenure in New York. “So for me, I was just trying to remember to be a good teammate, play the game the right way, play the game hard and not do something stupid that I regret. Learned a lot, I guess. A tough game. But it’s definitely made me stronger because a lot of people haven’t been through what I’ve been through.”
The Dodgers previously traded Juan Soto to the rival San Diego Padres, and while Gallo is hardly an ideal replacement, he provides lefty power and very good defense. Los Angeles is platooning Jack Lamb and Hanser Alberto at DH and Trace Thompson and Gavin Lux in left field. Now Gallo is another platoon option.
The 23-year-old batter was a second-round pick in the 2020 draft. He has a 5.75 ERA with 88 strikeouts in 51 2/3 Double-A innings this season. MLB.com ranked him no. 15 prospects in the Dodgers’ system. He has “a pair of above-average pitches at his best” and “has the fallback to make him a high-leverage reliever if (the start) doesn’t work out,” the write-up said. “
The Dodgers (69-33) and Yankees (70-34) own the two best records in baseball and double-digit splits. The Yankees have already replaced Gallo with Andrew Benintendi. who was acquired from the Kansas City Royals last week..
