To get through every season teams utilize their Minor League depth, and perhaps no team does it better than the Los Angeles Dodgers.
The Dodgers won a franchise-record 106 regular-season games in 2019, receiving contributions from a variety of different players. It ranged from stars to rookies that weren’t expected to make an impact this early, and Minor League depth that filled in for injured players.
Rocky Gale falls into that last category as the 31-year-old catcher was brought back for his second season with the Dodgers. He began the year with Triple-A Oklahoma City but wound up being called up in the middle of April when Russell Martin dealt with a back issue.
In two different stints with the Dodgers, Gale appeared in five games and went 2-for-15 (.133 batting average) with a run scored.
Gale spent a majority of the season between Double-A Tulsa and Oklahoma City, although he wound up being traded to the Tampa Bay Rays before the July 31 deadline in exchange for cash considerations and finished out the season with their Triple-A affiliate in Durham.
Overall in 51 total Minor League games between the two organizations, Gale hit .273/.310/.352 with two home runs, 18 runs scored and 20 RBI.
2019 highlight
Gale only started four games in his short time with the Dodgers, and his best came on April 16 against the Cincinnati Reds. Los Angeles came away with a 6-1 victory and Gale finished 1-for-4 with a single to right, scoring one of the team’s run.
He also did a solid job of handling the pitching staff, who led by Kenta Maeda, only allowed four hits and one run to earn the victory.
2020 outlook
Despite trading Gale to the Rays at this past season’s trade deadline, he is actually back in the organization after recently re-signing with Los Angeles on a Minor League deal.
Gale will serve as a depth piece once again in 2020. It is currently uncertain who the team’s backup behind Will Smith will be, but Austin Barnes can easily fill that role and Gale likely isn’t a candidate.
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