Joey Gallo, introspective at spring training, knows he has a job to doSpencer Nusbaum, WaPO, who I think will be taking over the beat from Andrew Golden, starts with observing Gallo's 31st AB of the Spring, noting how he's still adjusting after his quad injury, and how Gallo realizes this may be his last shot at the majors:
All of these facts seemed to coalesce in this at-bat on Monday, to the degree that Gallo only took a half-second to look up at a ball he had demolished before his eyes wandered down to the damp dirt on the first base line. A little more wind or a slightly lower launch angle would have taken it over the fence. He seemed to know how it would end before anyone else: the ball landed in Houston Astros center fielder Jacob Melton’s glove on the warning track. It dropped his spring average to .097. Entering Wednesday, he’s 3-for-31 with 14 strikeouts and zero homers.
Article goes into a lot of his reflections on what he tries to do in the spring (refine and adjust), his realization that his performance has slipped since his trade to the NYY in 2021, how it is serious business playing, and how he is enjoying the clubhouse (locker near vets Thomas, Vargas, and Senzel). Recognizes its his worst hitting spring so far, and that spring work is important to getting his approach right.
Back to his hitting:
Gallo trained with former major leaguer Matt Holliday in Oklahoma this offseason. Though he doesn’t dive into the tweaks because he “doesn’t want people breaking down every little thing he does,” he indicated that he isn’t trying to overhaul his game. He said he’s trying to stay a little more directional to the middle of the field and slightly curb his pull-hitting tendencies. Since he became a full-time starter in 2017, no player in the big leagues has had a higher percentage of their at-bats end in one of the three true outcomes (walk, strikeout, home run), per TruMedia. He hopes he can find his swing without sacrificing power in Washington.
Davey:Two hard-hit balls and four strikeout-free at-bats on Monday signaled a step in the right direction, but was a low bar to clear. He and Nationals Manager Dave Martinez acknowledged he’s a streaky player. But they want him to find his form and plan for him to play first base every day, — Joey Meneses will get the bulk of at-bats at DH — hoping to keep Gallo’s confidence high. (That’s a slight shift from the offseason plan to stick the two-time Gold Glove outfielder in the outfield, but everyday play nevertheless.)[/quote]
I will take normal Gallo and hope the quad doesn't cascade into messing up his power.
