If Joey Gallo ends up being an impact player for the Rangers in 2016, it likely won't come until after the All-Star break.
Texas general manager Jon Daniels said Tuesday in a radio interview that he hopes Gallo and young outfielder Nomar Mazara aren't in a position to make the big-league club out of spring training, preferring that both get more seasoning in Triple-A.
"I hope they don't make the club," Daniels told 105.3 The Fan, via the Dallas Morning News. "I hope they go down and get experience. My expectation is that they're both going to have big camps. They're very talented. They're going to be ready to roll probably before some of the veteran guys are and they're going to look very good in camp. I think we are cognizant as a group that these guys are extremely talented. They're also relatively inexperienced."
When Gallo arrived in the majors early last June, it looked like he'd never leave. With a home run in each of his first two games and five in his first 14, the slugger appeared set to live up to his considerable advance billing. But Gallo went 6 for 37 with 22 strikeouts from June 18-29 before being sent back to the minors until rosters expanded in September.
Mazaro, a powerfully built outfielder, also reached Triple-A for the first time in 2015 but spent most of the season at Double-A Frisco. He hit .296/.366/.443 between the two stops with 14 homers in 131 games.
With just 20 games above Double-A, it would be quite a stretch to expect to see Mazaro in the majors early in 2016. Daniels made it sound like the Rangers would go with their youngsters if they have to, but they believe both would be better served by getting more at-bats in the minors.
"We pushed Joey last year," Daniels said. "We did it I think for the right reasons. At the time, he kind of gave us a spark for a period but that inexperience showed up. Hopefully he'll be better for it and come out of it.
"Those are guys I view probably more down the line during the second half or sometime during the season. You know they're going to come into camp ready to compete ready to win the job. Hopefully other guys are healthy and step up to give those guys some time."
