Joey Gallo had a brutally honest take on how things went with Twins last season

Things didn’t exactly go great for Joey Gallo during his stint with the Minnesota Twins. He was signed to add some outfield depth but also provide some power in the lineup, something he did at the very start of the season but failed to sustain.

It’s a bummer, because Gallo was one of the more likable members of the clubhouse last season and he didn’t stick around long enough to truly catch on. Most of that had to do with how his offense got caught in a downward spiral after a relatively promising start to the year.

Gallo hit three home runs in his first four games and finishing April slashing .304/.360/.870, with a revenge series against the Yankees being where he peaked with the Twins. It was satisfying to both Gallo and the Twins to have him help Minnesota beat the New York in a season series for the first time since 2001, and that’s where the clocks should stop when thinking about his time spent with the team.

After that final series against the Yankees, Gallo went into steady decline. He failed to hit above .200 from the beginning of June through the end of the season and was ultimately left off the postseason roster.

It was a disappointing way to close out his short time with the Twins, something that is not lost on the man himself.

Joey Gallo had a brutally honest take on his one season with the Twins

Before the Twins and Nationals played on Thursday, Gallo spoke to the media and got pretty honest about how poorly things went last season in Minnesota. It’s actually a little heartbreaking to hear, especially after knowing what he went through with the Yankees and the impact it had on him.

"I totally understand what the situation was," Gallo said, via the Star Tribune. "There were guys playing better than me at the time and I was on a one-year deal, too, so I wasn't inked for the future with them. They didn't really have any ties to keep playing me. It was a mutual understanding that I knew I probably wasn't going to be on the playoff roster. I worked as hard as I could to be ready if I did get called, but obviously I didn't. That's something I'll have to live with."

“There is no ill will. I'm at peace with what happened,” Gall said. ”I wish I performed better for the team and that city, but I am still proud of what we did as a unit."

Even as rough as things went with Gallo last year, that still hits hard to hear. Twins fans were frustrated with how he played, but there was never any hard feelings toward him the way there was at some of his other stops. If anything, news that he signed with the Washington Nationals was met by Twins fans with some optimism that he'd be able to bounce back, rather than dusting their hands of him.

Hearing how hard things were for him is a reminder of the human being behind the uniform and should make everyone want to root a little harder for Gallo this season.

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