Yankees Top Trade Chip Earns ‘Scary’ Comp to Notorious Bronx Bust

When it comes to the sizing up of New York Yankees players, one comparison no fan of the team wants to hear is that of Joey Gallo, the ex-Rangers All-Star the Yankees acquired in a deal for four prospects in the summer of 2021 and dumped a year later with his MLB career left in a shambles.

Gallo batted .159 over parts of two seasons—in 501 plate appearances—logging 194 strikeouts in 140 games. He quickly became the poster child for the type of player who, despite having talent, can’t handle the pressure of playing in New York.

The Yankees were glad to see the back of Gallo when they shipped him off to the Dodgers. But a disturbing notion cropped up in Jon Heyman’s article at the New York Post this week, titled, “How Yankees prospects were viewed at trade deadline — including scary Joey Gallo comp.”

Heyman had asked around MLB about how other front offices looked at the Yankees’ trade chips. The guy with a Gallo comp? Outfielder Spencer Jones, the No. 2 prospect in the organization and the primary piece the team offered to land a top-level starting pitcher for baseball’s stretch run.

“One scary comp heard regarding Jones: Joey Gallo. The belief is Jones is better equipped to deal with New York. But they do share many traits: great speed/base runner, can play center field, elite power,” Heyman wrote.

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Spencer Jones Ranked No. 2 in Farm System

The consensus among prospect-ranking listings is that outfielder Jasson Dominguez is at the top of the Yankees’ chart, followed by Jones. But Jones’s ability has been called into question recently.

The physical tools Jones offers are obvious. He is 6-foot-6 and an excellent defensive outfielder. But while he has shown promise at the plate, he has not exactly torn up the minor leagues this season, though he’s gotten better lately.

Jones is batting .242 with a .329 on-base percentage. He is slugging .416, but has raised some eyebrows with his 142 strikeouts in 389 plate appearances at Double A Somerset. That is Gallo-esque.

“Jones offers an intriguing combination of power and uncommon athleticism for a 6-foot-6, 235-pounder,” MLB.com wrote of him. “His bat speed, strength and leverage produce well-above-average raw power and exit velocities, though there are some concerns about how much of his pop will play in games. He rarely turns on pitches and must prove he can handle quality velocity on the inner half at higher levels. His naturally long left-handed stroke results in a lot of strikeouts, including 155 with a 29 percent whiff rate in 2023.”

Jones is only 23 but it still could be difficult for him to find a spot in New York in the near future. The Yankees have decided they will not trade Dominguez, also a centerfielder, which means that, with Aaron Judge and presumably Juan Soto (should he re-sign) already penciled in, the team’s outfield for the next few years seems to be pretty well settled.

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Yankees’ Joey Gallo Experience ‘Sucked’

As for Gallo, he remains something of a tragic figure in Yankees lore. New Yorkers loathe players who are not up to the mental challenge of playing in the Big Apple, but Gallo was so spectacularly bad that there is almost a respect for how he kept at it despite his many failures. It takes a lot to get up every day and be a .159 hitter.

“I look back, and I’m sad about it,’’ Gallo said, per the Post.

He continued: “I really grew up a Yankee fan, and all I wanted to do was play for the Yankees. I think part of it, not that it was a problem, but I wanted so badly to do well there. … I’ll probably never have a chance to play for the Yankees again. That was my opportunity, and now I’m known as the guy who [f–king] sucked for the Yankees. That part is tough, and I have to live with that for the rest of my career and the rest of my life, really.”

Gallo still has the power to stick around MLB, currently with the Nationals. He hit 21 homers for the Twins in 2023, but did so with a .177 batting average. He is hitting just .164 this season, with only five homers.

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