Rangers give Gallo first day off of season

Third baseman Joey Gallo was out of the Texas Rangers’ starting lineup Sunday for the first time this season after 31 consecutive starts, but there was no injury or signs of fatigue.

He received a day off for long-term maintenance, and it happened to coincide with the Seattle Mariners pitching left-hander Dillon Overton. Manager Jeff Banister said that the Rangers had planned to give Gallo the day last week when lefty James Paxton was scheduled and before he hit the disabled list.

“If there was fatigue, it would have been more just because of being in the big leagues,” Banister said.

Gallo entered Sunday with a team-high 10 home runs as the fill-in for Adrian Beltre, who opened the season on the DL and remains there with a strain in his right calf. Gallo was batting .204 but was second on the team with 13 walks.

Pete Kozma replaced Gallo in the lineup for his first start since joining the Rangers last week. Gallo is expected to rejoin the lineup Monday, when the Rangers open a two-game interleague series at San Diego.

This story was originally published May 7, 2017 at 2:52 PM with the headline "Rangers give Gallo first day off of season."