Joey Gallo played in 51 games last year as a left fielder for the University of Minnesota and 51 games as a first baseman for the Twins, and is a two-time Gold Glove Award winner (2020/21 — when he was enrolled texas rangersprimarily plays right field) told reporters that he intends to play left field and first base again in 2024.
Gallo, 30, signed a one-year, $5 million contract with Washington last month, and the nine-year veteran reportedly discussed his role in D.C. with Nationals manager Davey Martinez after joining the team. .
“The plan is to play outfield, play first base a little bit, help out where I need to help out,” Gallo said.
He’s played more games in left field than any other position at this point in his career, but the Twins also used him in center field (11 games) and right field (10 games) last season.
Gallo said his versatility is a key asset and something he has worked hard at throughout his career.
“I pride myself on being able to move around the field at any time,” he said.
Photo credit: David Berding/Getty Images
“That’s kind of what I said [Martinez]is, “Hey, anywhere you need me to play, I can play.” It’s no big deal, I’m pretty versatile. ”
“I like being able to bring value with my range and my arm,” Gallo added. “I just love working out. But I also love third base. I’ve played third base, but I think a lot of people forget, I never played as an outfielder until 2019. was.*, I’ve been an infielder, not an outfielder, all my life. So he’s very comfortable at first base.I thought I could do pretty well there this time. [past] Year with Minnesota. But for me, I think it’s about having a great first baseman who can make picks and make plays and not have to worry about maybe my throw being bad. I want to have a reliable first baseman there and that’s it. I’m looking to be on first base for the players.
“We are working hard to achieve both at a high level.”
[ed. note – “ * = Not, technically, true. He played the outfield in the majors in 2015, ‘17, and ‘18 as well, but he did play mostly in the infield before 2018.”]
When it came to finding a club this winter, Gallo said he reached out to other major leaguers to get feedback on the Nationals and playing in the nation’s capital.
“I haven’t heard any bad things,” Gallo said, adding that he had a positive impression of the organization after meeting with other major leaguers and speaking with Martinez.
“I’ve heard nothing but great things. [Davey] “Moda,” he said. “The players seem to love him, the media loves him, everyone who meets him seems to love him. So being around him and seeing what kind of energy he has. I’m so excited to see it. I’ve seen him get kicked out a few times and I always love it because it was so funny.”
Gallo, who joins a young ball club in a reboot and is looking to re-establish his value on the one-year deal given to him by the Nats, says he has a lot to offer and what he can pass on to his new teammates. He said he thought there was.
“For me, I’ve always loved being around the young guys because I like them watching me run and play. Maybe not necessarily whether I’m going to hit or not, but just simply It’s just how you do your job that matters,” he said, nodding self-deprecatingly to his career average of .197.Last season’s AVG was .177.).
“We had Adrian Beltre,” Gallo said. “…congratulations to just being inducted into the Hall of Fame. Prince Fielder. Josh Hamilton. I’ve had some very good leaders and I’ve learned a lot from them, and I’m going to take that with me now. I feel that I can help young people who become young people.
:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25267407/1484170721.jpg)
Photo by Blaise Hemmelgarn/Minnesota Twins/Getty Images
“I love playing with young players. They’re always energetic and just want to play and have fun, so I just want to bring that to the table.”
Gallo said some of the naive young players brought to the table are valuable.
“When you look at the roster, we have a lot of young, athletic guys that we only played against a little bit last year. It’s always fun to be around guys like that,” he reiterated.
“So I’m excited to be with a young, energetic group.” [who] “They still have very little idea of what’s in front of them,” Gallo added. “And those players bring that energy every day in the clubhouse.”
