Joey Gallo was released on Sunday by the Chicago White Sox and if the 31-year-old signs on with another team, he’ll be making a position switch.
After playing outfield, third base and first base throughout his 10-year MLB career, Gallo intends to give pitching a try.
[Join or create a Yahoo Fantasy Baseball league for the 2025 MLB season]
“He had expressed interest through his agent if it didn’t work out on the major league team, that he was going to explore the pitching side,” White Sox assistant general manager Josh Barfield told MLB.com. “I know it’s something he’s been dabbling around with in between some of the reps here. But he asked for his release today. So, we accommodated that.”
Following his release, Gallo posted, “It’s been fun outfield” on X with a highlight video of plays he’s made.
That message was followed up by him clarifying that he wasn’t retiring.
“Just to be clear, I will be pitching,” he wrote.
Gallo, who has played for the Texas Rangers, New York Yankees, Los Angeles Dodgers, Minnesota Twins, and Washington Nationals, is a two-time All-Star and two-time Gold Glove winner.
“Just talking to Joey and talking to him this morning, just came to a mutual agreement that that was the best thing,” White Sox manager Will Venable said. “Wish him luck as he starts a new chapter as a pitcher.”
Pitching isn’t foreign to Gallo. He was a presence on the mound at Bishop Gorman high school in Las Vegas, though he earned Nevada Gatorade Baseball Player of the Year and High School All-American honors for his talents at the plate.
As a pitcher, Gallo made 21 varsity appearances and even threw a no-hitter.
The White Sox’s organizational pitching depth meant there was no room for Gallo to try his hand on the mound and work his way up through their farm system.
“Where we are right now, it’s tough to give him that opportunity,” Barfield said. “Yeah, it’s not unheard of, right? You see it with [Rick] Ankiel going the other way and [Tyler] Naquin who was here a couple of years ago, he just signed as a pitcher too.”
Fellow MLBers Brett Phillips and Tyler Naquin have also ventured down the path Gallo wants to travel. (All three also last played for the White Sox before deciding to attempt to become full-time pitchers.)
Phillips played for seven teams before joining the Yankees last summer with the intention to transition into a pitcher. He was roughed up in his only outing with the Single-A Tampa Tarpons before electing free agency in November,
After last playing in 2023, Naquin spent the 2024 season helping Texas A&M baseball’s coaching staff before signing with the Cleveland Guardians in March to become a pitcher. He spent the first five years of his MLB career with the Guardians.
Read the full article here
