The trade: The Los Angeles Dodgers acquire OF Joey Gallo from the New York Yankees for RHP Clayton Beeter.
From Juan Soto to ... Joey Gallo. That's probably not exactly how the Dodgers envisioned their trade deadline going. But maybe good Gallo will show up in Los Angeles! Or maybe not.
The grades are in ...
Obviously, Gallo has been atrocious for the Yankees, hitting .159/.282/.339. That would match Adam Dunn's .159 average in 2011 as the lowest batting average for a player with at least 273 plate appearances since Les Moss of the 1947 St. Louis Browns hit .157. So, yeah, it's been a rough go of things for Gallo in 2022.
So why would the Dodgers want him?
1. He does draw walks. His .282 OBP is still bad, but, hey, it's higher than Cody Bellinger's .265 mark.
2. He hits home runs. Sort of. In theory. His home run rate this year of 4.4% is better than the major league average of 2.9% -- but below his career mark of 6.4%. L.A. can hope he finds his swing again. After all, with the Rangers in 2021, before his trade to the Yankees, he hit .223/.379/.490, good for a 138 OPS+. At his best, even when he's just a .220 hitter, Gallo is an above-average offensive performer.
3. He's a good defensive player with one of the better throwing arms in the league. Note that Mookie Betts started at second base the other day and manager Dave Roberts suggested Betts could play there on occasion down the stretch. Gallo would give them another option in the outfield for those days when Betts plays second.
4. The belief that a change of scenery will do him good. Trouble is, he's hitting just .185 against fastballs and has been useless against breaking balls, hitting .088. Even last year he hit .235 and slugged .574 against fastballs. Gallo has tried to compensate by swinging much more often on the first pitch (41% of the time, compared to about 28% the previous three seasons), so you wonder if he's been trying to hunt fastballs --without success.
Mostly, however, this is just about acquiring additional outfield insurance. With Chris Taylor on the injured list, the Dodgers have been playing a lot of Trayce Thompson in the outfield. They just called up James Outman, and while he reached base seven times in eight plate appearances in his first two games, he was hitting .225 at Triple-A. Their DHs of late have included Jake Lamb and Hanser Alberto. So they can actually use a bat.
Of course, it's hard to envision a playoff lineup with Gallo (.159), Bellinger (.205) and Max Muncy (.162) all playing at the same time. Or at least, it's hard to envision that being a World Series-winning lineup, no matter the production you're getting from Betts, Freddie Freeman and Trea Turner. It's hard to picture Gallo getting a big hit off Max Scherzer or Jacob deGrom or Joe Musgrove in a big moment. But then again, all it takes is one three-run home run to turn around a series.
Grade: D+
The Joey Gallo era in New York will go down right alongside the Andy Hawkins era and the Alvaro Espinoza era and the Stump Merrill era in Yankees' lore. Yankees fans wanted to run him out of town months ago and understandably so: In 140 games with the Yankees, he hit .159 with 25 home runs -- and 46 RBIs. Ouch.
Beeter was the Dodgers' second-round pick in 2020 out of Texas Tech, a power-armed righty with a limited college record. He underwent Tommy John surgery in 2017 (with another arthroscopic surgery later on his elbow), pitched just 20 innings in relief in 2019 and then made just four starts in 2020 due to COVID-19. The Dodgers brought him along slowly in 2021: He started 27 games, but pitched just 52⅓ innings. Kiley McDaniel gave him a 40 FV grade entering 2022. He can tough the upper 90s with a low-spin curveball.
The Dodgers have once again handled him carefully at Double-A Tulsa. He's made 16 starts, but pitched just 51⅔ innings The 88 strikeouts attest to the quality of his stuff, but he's also walked 35 and allowed 10 home runs, suggesting his future likely lies in the bullpen. He's a legitimate prospect, but for the Yankees, it's mostly about clearing Gallo from the roster and the dark cloud of his .159 average.