During the course of the Rangers' win over the Pirates on Wednesday (TEX 9, PIT 6), Texas slugger Joey Gallo launched the 100th home run of his career. As is the case with most Gallo clouts, it was not a particularly cheap one:
It's taken Gallo just 377 games to reach 100 home runs. Know what he hasn't reached yet? That would be 100 singles. As it turns out, Gallo is the first ever to pull this off:
This is my new favorite stat.
— Matt Meyers (@mtmeyers) May 8, 2019
Fewest career singles at time of 100th HR
1) Joey Gallo: 93
2) Russell Branyan: 172
3) Ken Phelps: 174
4) Ryan Howard: 176
5) Chris Carter: 179
6) Dave Kingman: 180
Great breakdown from @SlangsOnSports https://t.co/TzebRczUmf
The feat itself is amazing, but what really defies belief is how no one was particularly close to doing this before Gallo came along.
As for 2019, Gallo now has 12 home runs versus 11 singles. He's also shin-deep into what will be, should trends hold, the best season his career to date. After Wednesday's blast, Gallo's now batting .274/.426/.679. He's always been one of the hardest hitters in the game, and this season Gallo's combined that skill with much improved plate discipline -- in particular he's done a much better job of laying off pitches outside the zone. Meantime, almost half of his fly balls have left the park.
Really, we've never seen a hitter quite like Gallo before. This bit of history etches that in sharp relief.
