Greg Amsinger Thinks Joey Gallo Is Jason Giambi
Last night, I was watching MLB Network. The live coverage tuned in to the end of the extra-inning game between the New York Yankees and Chicago White Sox. The White Sox loaded the bases in the bottom of the 10th inning with Tim Anderson at the plate, but they ultimately could not pull out the win. Joey Gallo hit two home runs in the Bronx Bombers’ 7-5 victory. I actually like MLB Network’s presentation and coverage of games, but this broadcast featured a take from Greg Amsinger that I couldn’t ignore.
MLB Network’s Greg Amsinger said that Joey Gallo could be the Jason Giambi of this era. All it takes is one little trip over to Baseball Reference to see how bad of a take this is.
Jason Giambi Is So Much Better Than Joey Gallo
Joey Gallo is a lifetime .209 hitter (yuck) with a .335 on-base percentage. He has a career OPS+ of 115 and averages 228 strikeouts over a full 162-game season. Jason Giambi hit .277 over a 20-year career, getting on base at a .399 clip. He finished with a career OPS+ of 139 and averaged 113 strikeouts per 162 games. How is this even a comparison?
Jason Giambi led MLB in walks four times, on-base percentage three times, slugging percentage once, and OPS+ twice. He won the American League MVP award in 2000, finishing second in the voting in 2001 and in the top 10 on two other occasions. Gallo has never finished a season with the league lead in any statistical category (currently leading in both strikeouts and walks), nor has he ever sniffed an MVP vote.
Harold Reynolds rightfully questioned Greg Amsinger’s take as soon as he said it, and that was without the benefit of having the stats in front of him. With the statistics, it’s beyond the pale. Joey Gallo is nowhere close to Jason Giambi. He’s much closer to guys like Chris Davis or Mark Reynolds than he is to a player like Giambi. Sorry Greg Amsinger, can’t let that one slide.
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