The Twins have an abundance of depth this season. It seems like that was the intent of the off season, particularly after the Carlos Correa saga finally came to an end. After that point, the Twins added Michael Taylor and Donovan Solano, having also traded for Kyle Farmer earlier in the winter. The flashiest move, of course, was for pitcher Pablo Lopez, but there was some work done in the iddle.
Christian Vasquez fills an obvious hole behind the plate, where Ryan Jeffers failed to seize the role going forward and Gary Sanchez is still looking for a job. Joey Gallo was signed early in the offseason in what seemed like an indication that Max Kepler would soon be traded, but now, it looks like Gallo is going to stake out an important role with the team this season.
Many people will look at Gallo's career, particularly in recent years, and wonder exactly what the plan or him is. Sure, he can hit a bunch of home runs, and Fangraphs projects he will hit 25 this season, but projects that that number will come with a batting average lingering in the .190s. I'm sure many long time fans hear that, then start to sweat through waking nightmares, remembering Miguel Sano.
Early in Sano's career, there was an attempt to move him to the outfield. To say he was miscast is something of an understatement, but Sano was a power hitter whose bat had earned a spot in the lineup. He was a natural corner infielder, but the Twins had Trevor Plouffe at third and little known Joe Mauer at 1st. Sano was still young, and so he moved to the outfield, where the Twins hoped he would stick.
Sano, as it turned out, was not cut out for the outfield. He didn't have the instinct, nor the range to account for the lack of instinct, to play in the outfield. Fly ball pitchers saw averages creep up, Sano got hurt and started designated hitting more, and it was the beginning of a long trend of wondering exactly what the Twins were going to do with him.
Sano was able to tap into that prodigious power potential eventually, crushing 30 home runs in a season twice, and at least 20 4 times. Along with those home runs came an almost unbelievable amount of strikeouts. His average still hovered in the .220 range, and his OPS+ was usually well above 100, but he was a player without position, and one that had a reputation for bad decision making. The fan base was turning on him, and with other younger and more reliable players emerging around him, the organization was going to leave him behind too.
With that profile in mind, it's not hard to see why there was such a negative reaction when the Twins signed Gallo. The Veteran outfielder seemed to boast a big home run stroke that was saddled with a low batting average, lower than even Sano's, particularly in the last couple of seasons.
Gallo will hit for 40 home runs when healthy, which is more than even Sano, but offensively, admittedly, Sano was probably a little bit better. On the other hand, in the field Gallo is a lot better. While Sano was a liability in the outfield, and wasn't good enough to hold a position in the infield, Gallo is being penciled in as a starting left fielder, bringing with him two recent Gold Gloves for his work in the outfield.
Put another way, there are 4 Gold Gloves among the Twins outfielders, and Gallo has half of them (Byron Buxton and Michael Taylor each have 1). While Sano was ultimately a 1 tool player, Gallo has at least two skills.
One last statistic to drive it home. Joey Gallo has accumulated over 3 Wins Above Replacement in three different seasons. The best Sano has ever done is 2.8. Despite the initial impression you might have of Gallo, and how much he reminds you o Miguel Sano, rest easy. Joey Gallo is much better.
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