Mike Gallo
| IP | 116.0 |
|---|---|
| ERA | 4.11 |
| WHIP | 1.517 |
| BB/9 | 3.6 |
| SO/9 | 5.4 |
- Full name Michael Dwain Gallo
- Born 04/02/1977 in Long Beach, CA
- Profile Ht.: 6'0" / Wt.: 175 / Bats: L / Throws: L
- School Long Beach State
- Debut 07/02/2003
- Drafted in the 5th round (173rd overall) by the Houston Astros in 1999.
Top Rankings
Organization Prospect Rankings
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The presence of lefty closer Billy Wagner obscured the fact that the Astros lacked a reliable southpaw set-up man from 1999-2002. Gallo filled the void when he was promoted last June, and Houston says he can become more than a lefty specialist. The 1999 Big West Conference pitcher of the year (beating out Chad Qualls and Kirk Saarloos, among others), Gallo moved to the bullpen as a pro in mid-2000. He spent three full years in Class A before rocketing from Double-A to Triple-A to the majors in less than three months last year. Gallo goes right after hitters with an 88-91 mph fastball, a big-breaking curveball he'll throw to lefthanders and righthanders, a compact slider and a changeup. His fastball jumps in on lefties and he uses the changeup to combat righties. Gallo has improved his ability to locate his pitches in the strike zone. He incorporates a leg kick and a lot of motion into his delivery, making him deceptive. He does the little things such as fielding his position well and holding runners, allowing just four steals in eight tries last year. Gallo isn't big and can hang his slider when he doesn't stay on top of it. He needs to do a better job against big league righties, who hit .295 against him, and some Houston officials would like to see him drop down occasionally versus lefties. Gallo was sharp in the Arizona Fall League, recording a 0.89 ERA and 11-0 strikeout-walk ratio in 11 innings, reinforcing the Astros' faith in him.
