DALLAS (105.3 The Fan) - The Texas Rangers have traded two-time All-Star Joey Gallo to the New York Yankees, according to Jeff Passan of ESPN.
According to multiple reports, the Rangers will send Gallo and left-handed reliever John King to New York, while Texas will receive six prospects in return.
Those prospects include pitcher Glenn Otto, second baseman Ezequiel Duran, shortstop Josh Smith, and second baseman/outfielder Trevor Hauver, as well as multiple other prospects who have yet to be named, Passan reports.
None of the prospects headed to Texas were in the Yankees' top-13 at the beginning of the season, per MLB Pipeline, though those rankings come after a lost minor league season in 2020.
However, JJ Cooper of Baseball America reports that Duran and Smith would have been rated as the No. 6 and No. 8 prospects in the Yankees organization on their upcoming midseason top-30 list. He adds that Hauver and Otto would have also made a significant jump in their rankings.
Duran, 22, is a native of the Dominican Republic. He's currently playing for High-A Hudson Valley where he's hitting .290/.374/.533 with 13 home runs and 37 RBI.
Josh Norris of Baseball America says Duran "has big upside, and evaluators internally and externally believe in his upside as a hitter."
Smith, 23, was selected by the Yankees in the second round of the 2019 draft out of Louisiana State University. Smith is also playing for High-A Hudson Valley after being promoted from Low-A Tampa. He's hitting .324/.448/.641 with nine home runs and 24 RBI.
Norris says Smith's "stock has been on the rise" of late.
"He had the college pedigree that comes with an LSU career, and has strong strike zone discipline, plenty of raw juice and blend of skills that should help him stick at shortstop," he added.
Gallo is hitting 223/.379/.490 with 25 home runs across 388 plate appearances this season. King is 5-7 with a 3.52 WHIP in 27 appearances.
Gallo has spent his entire career with the Rangers since being drafted by the club with the 39th overall pick in the 2015 draft.
The 27 year old has had an up and down seven years with the organization, hitting just .211 in 568 career games. However, he's one of the game's premier power hitters with 145 career home runs.
After years of switching positions, Gallo has developed into one of the best outfielders in MLB, and was well on his way to winning his second straight American League Gold Glove award.
Sensing that his time was soon coming to an end in Texas, Gallo said his goodbyes to Rangers fans after the club's 5-4 win over the Arizona Diamondbacks on Tuesday.
"This year, I'm a little more prepared. Last year, I wasn't really ready for it but I went through it and I understand it's part of the business and that's how it goes in baseball, unfortunately," Gallo told reporter Emily Jones. "Obviously, I'd love to stay here but it's not up to me at the end of the day. I just want to say thank you to the Rangers — if this is my last time — thank you to the Rangers fans. You guys have been great for me. I love you guys."
This is a developing news story.
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