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SNY's Andy Martino will be responding to and breaking down answers to Yankees questions from readers. Here's the latest...
Is there any way possible the Yankees could move off of Joey Gallo? - @e_train32
The Yankees, by virtue of the fact that they win every day when not playing the Houston Astros, have the luxury of slow-playing the Gallo situation.
But, by virtue of the fact that the Yankees only win on some of the days when they face Houston’s elite pitching, they won’t ignore Gallo’s deep, deep, deep, deep, deep, deep slump forever.
Any critique of the Yanks’ offense should be set against the context that they are averaging the second most runs per game in the majors this year, trailing only the Los Angeles Dodgers. But given the team’s daily excellence, an October outcome short of the American League pennant will feel like a bitter disappointment.
To that end, the bottom third of the lineup could be stronger, because it is soft enough to be vulnerable against Houston’s arsenal of filthy starters and fire-balling relievers. Gallo’s propensity to strike out in seemingly every at-bat screams for a trade-deadline upgrade in the outfield.
The Yankees win despite Gallo, so they can wait until then to fully marginalize Gallo -- beyond the marginalization that has already occurred with reduced playing time and a home in the nine-hole for Gallo when he does play.
Because of that, the most sensible course of action will be for the front office to spend the next month evaluating trade options, then land a bat on or just before the Aug. 2 trade deadline. In a dream scenario, the Yankees can dump Gallo on another team in the process of all the late July wheeling and dealing. They would almost certainly have to pay all or most of his salary.
If the team can’t successfully do that, it can further marginalize him on the bench, phase him out, and leave him off the postseason roster. If the Yankees want to be more dramatic than that, they can cut him (that feels less likely, but we’ll see how crowded the roster looks in August). They can put him in an MRI machine and notice a problem in his shoulder, neck or pinkie toe.
Just know this: If Gallo doesn’t show significant improvement, he won’t be taking meaningful at-bats in the postseason, which is all that really matters in Yankeeland at present.