Las Vegan Joey Gallo fills void at third base for Rangers

ARLINGTON, Texas — Joey Gallo has hit the hardest home run in the majors this season — and some of the longest.

The young third baseman from Bishop Gorman High School, who went to spring training not knowing if he would make the Texas Rangers’ roster, has played all 23 games in place of Adrian Beltre, who has spent all season on the disabled list with a calf injury.

There have been majestic home runs, the kind that have come to be expected in his short career. But the 6-foot-5-inch, 235-pound Gallo is showing that he’s more than just a big bopper. He can field the ball, too, and isn’t too bad running the bases when not trotting around them.

“For me, the home runs are going to be there,” Gallo said. “One of the things that always kind of frustrated me was people didn’t realize that I could actually play defense. People didn’t realize that I could run the bases. They just thought I was just a big donkey.”

Gallo is tied for third in the American League in homers with seven after Friday’s games — all but one of them at least 422 feet. That included a 462-foot blast with an exit velocity of 116.1 mph, according to MLB stats, on April 21 at home against the Kansas City Royals.

“He’s the guy that needs to be complimented on everything, just the complete game really, and he’s been playing that way,” Texas manager Jeff Banister said. “We talked about his defense, we’ve talked about the base running, the presence of mind on defense, and then engaged at the plate and putting really good swings.”

Gallo, who played on the same Little League team in Las Vegas with Bryce Harper and Kris Bryant, also has four doubles, 16 RBIs and three stolen bases in three attempts. He had only one error in 58 chances before committing two in Friday’s loss to the Los Angeles Angels. Before that game, he was sixth in the majors and second in the AL in defensive runs saved at third.

“I’m just starting to learn to trust my abilities and trust myself more in what I can do,” Gallo said. “I think I used to listen to other peoples’ opinions too much. I wouldn’t think I was good enough to be here because everyone else thought I wasn’t.”

Gallo, the 39th overall pick in the 2012 amateur draft, showed flashes of his power during stints with the Rangers last season and 2015. But both times he returned to the minors when the strikeouts piled up and it was clear he wasn’t ready for major league pitching.

At 23, he has shown far more patience this season with a willingness to lay off a pitch. He is hitting only .222 and has struck out 29 times in 72 at-bats, but that’s an improvement over last season (19 in 25 at-bats) and 2015 (57 in 108 at-bats).

Banister thinks Gallo’s batting average will climb in time, but “he’s a home run hitter. He hits balls out of the ballpark. That’s what he is.”

Gallo knows that, too. His deeper understanding of his strengths and weaknesses at the plate have been integral to his improvement.

And providing more than adequate defense has made Beltre’s absence less noticeable. After all, he’s replacing a five-time Gold Glove winner.

“If you’re not having a good day at the plate, then I’m screwed if that’s the player I am,” Gallo said. “As the player I am right now, I can make some plays on defense to help the team win.”