2012 MLB Draft: Texas Picks 3B Joey Gallo At #39 Overall

With the 39th overall pick in the 2012 Rule 4 amateur draft, the Texas Rangers have selected 6' 5", 205-pound third baseman Joey Gallo from Bishop Gorman High School in Nevada.

Gallo was listed at No. 23 on Keith Law's board of the top 100 prospects in the draft, and at No. 33 on Baseball America's draft board. Kevin Goldstein put him at No. 27 on his draft board of the top 30 draft prospects. 

The story here is somewhat akin to that which we saw with the Brinson pick -- Gallo is a beast in the physical sense, endowed with what many draft pundits consider to be the best raw power (from the left side, no less) of any player in the draft, although the question being commonly asked across the bevy of scouting reports is whether the hit tool will develop enough for him to fully utilize his light-tower strength. If enough pieces of the puzzle click into place, he'll be a high-strikeout, high-homer corner infielder as a big leaguer; his arm is regarded as superb, to the extent that he could possibly have been a top-10 pick if he were willing to pitch, but he is fully committed to playing in the field.

With the size and borderline defense at the hot corner, though, we may be looking at another Chris Davis-type situation, where his 'howitzer' of an arm is neutralized by his inability to fit at any position other than first base.