Yovani Gallardo

Yovani Gallardo ( ; born February 27, 1986) is a Mexican former professional baseball pitcher. He was selected by the Milwaukee Brewers in the second round of the 2004 Major League Baseball draft out of Trimble Technical High School in Fort Worth, Texas. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Milwaukee Brewers, Baltimore Orioles, Texas Rangers, Seattle Mariners, and Cincinnati Reds. Gallardo was an All-Star in 2010, and won the Silver Slugger Award for pitchers that year.

Career Gallardo attended Green B. Trimble Technical High School in Fort Worth, Texas. He committed to attend Texas Christian University (TCU) on a college baseball scholarship to play for the TCU Horned Frogs. The Milwaukee Brewers selected Gallardo in the second round of the 2004 Major League Baseball draft. Gallardo signed with the Brewers, rather than enroll at TCU.

Milwaukee Brewers 2006 season With Brevard County Manatees of the Class A-Advanced Florida State League, Gallardo had a no-hitter for innings before surrendering a triple on June 9; Gallardo finished the game with 11 strikeouts. Splitting time between Brevard County and the Huntsville Stars of the Class AA Southern League, he led all minor league pitchers with 188 strikeouts in 155 innings of work, the most in a single season by a Milwaukee Brewers prospect. His Double-A line included 13 starts and a 1.63 earned run average (ERA). Gallardo made his major league debut against the San Francisco Giants on June 18, yielding 3 earned runs in innings for the win, with three walks and four strikeouts. In Gallardo's first at-bat in the majors, he hit an RBI double. He would later take the no-decision when the bullpen blew the lead in the 8th.

2008 season Gallardo started the season on the disabled list. He went on the 15-day DL on March 21, , with a torn lateral meniscus in his left knee. Upon his return on April 20, Gallardo pitched well during the next three games, compiling a 1.80 ERA in twenty innings of work.

During his start on May 1, Gallardo jumped to get out of the way of a diving Chicago Cubs player – Reed Johnson – and landed awkwardly, bending his right knee extensively, during the 5th inning. He continued to pitch through the 6th, but was later diagnosed with a torn anterior cruciate ligament (ACL). He ended up taking the loss to Cole Hamels. A few baseball commentators, notably Eric Karabell of ESPN, believed that Gallardo would be the Brewers' ace for the coming season.

His first start was on April 8 against the Giants, lasting innings, giving up only 2 runs and striking-out 6 en route to getting the win. He made news in the 6th inning when he hit a three-run home run off of Randy Johnson. He was the only pitcher to ever hit a home run off of Johnson.

Gallardo pitched his first career complete game on April 24 against the Houston Astros. Gallardo allowed only two runs on five hits, striking out seven.

Gallardo made baseball news again in his next start against the Pittsburgh Pirates. Gallardo pitched 8 shutout innings and hit a home run in the 7th, which was the only run of the game. Gallardo became only the 26th pitcher in major league history to win a game 1–0 while hitting a home run, and joined Red Ruffing and Early Wynn as the only ones to do so while striking out 10 or more batters (Gallardo struck out 11, also a career high). Gallardo tossed a 2-hitter on Memorial Day against the St. Louis Cardinals. He struck out 6 batters, one of them Albert Pujols. He struck out 9 on May 31 against the Cincinnati Reds. Gallardo pitched another 2-hitter on June 5, shutting out the Atlanta Braves 4–0. He struck out six Braves in the victory.

Gallardo struggled with his stamina in the final two months of the season, and was finally benched for the remainder of the year in mid-September. Gallardo started 30 games for the Brewers, with a record of 13–12 with a 3.73 ERA. He struck out 204 batters over 185 innings pitched, becoming only the 4th Brewer pitcher to strike out 200+ batters.

2010 season On April 7, the Brewers signed Gallardo to a five-year, $30.1 million contract extension through the 2014 season, with an $13 million option for 2015. Gallardo pitched his first career complete-game shutout on May 28 at Miller Park against the New York Mets, outdueling Mets ace Johan Santana 2–0. Gallardo was selected to his first All-Star game in the 2010 season, but just after he was elected, he got injured.

On August 27, 2010, Gallardo was robbed at gunpoint at a Milwaukee supermarket. He and clubhouse attendant Alex Sanchez handed over jewelry and money to the robbers. Sanchez was struck on the head with the butt of the gun.

Gallardo had a solid 2010 season, going 14–7 with a 3.84 ERA and 200 strikeouts in 185 innings pitched, plus two complete-game shutouts. Gallardo also was stellar at the plate, batting .254 with 4 home runs, 10 RBIs, and a .504 slugging percentage. Gallardo was awarded the National League Silver Slugger award as the best hitting pitcher.

2011 season Gallardo was named the opening day starter for the second straight year after a rib injury placed Zack Greinke on the DL. On April 5, his second start of the season, Gallardo recorded his third complete-game shutout in his career. The opposing Atlanta Braves were only able to record two hits and two walks. Gallardo also recorded a hit and scored the only run of the game.

On April 23, he hit his ninth home run of his career off of the Astros' Nelson Figueroa as the Brewers won 14–7. On May 7, Gallardo pitched a no-hitter into the 8th inning against the St. Louis Cardinals, but it was ended by a lead-off single by Daniel Descalso in the 8th that just slipped past a diving Craig Counsell. It turned out to be the only hit of the game for St. Louis as Gallardo finished the 8th inning by retiring the next 3 batters and Brewers closer John Axford closed out the 9th inning in a 4–0 Brewers win. Gallardo walked 4 batters and struck out 6 in the game.

On his August 21 start against the New York Mets, Gallardo earned his 14th win of the season, matching his career high. The win was also his 50th career win in the majors.

On September 17, Gallardo set a new career high in strikeouts with 13 against the Cincinnati Reds, including 4 in one inning, with Brandon Phillips reaching on a wild 3rd strike. Gallardo became the second Brewer ever to strike out 4 batters in one inning, with Manny Parra being the other. Gallardo also won his 17th game of the season, the most by a Brewer since Chris Capuano won 18 games in 2005.

On September 23, in his final regular season start, Gallardo struck out 11 Marlins. It was the third straight start in which Gallardo struck out at least 11 batters, and it ensured him another 200 strikeout season, his third in a row. As a result of this game, he became the first Brewers pitcher to notch 3 straight double digit strikeout starts, as well as 3 straight 200+ strikeout seasons. The only other pitchers to have three seasons of at least 200 strikeouts at 25 or younger over the previous 20 years were Kerry Wood (1998, 2001 and 2002) and Félix Hernández (2009, 2010 and 2011).

Gallardo finished with a 17–10 record for the season with a 3.52 ERA, and 207 strikeouts (fifth in the league) in 207.1 innings pitched. His 17 wins were fourth in the NL. Gallardo finished his first regular season with the Rangers posting a 13-11 record in 33 starts while posting a respectable 3.42 ERA in 184.1 innings pitched. Gallardo pitched for the Rangers in Game 1 of the 2015 ALDS against the Toronto Blue Jays, earning the win. He became a free agent following the season.

Baltimore Orioles On February 25, 2016, Gallardo signed a two-year, $22 million contract with the Baltimore Orioles, with a team option for a third year. In his lone season with the Orioles, Gallardo turned in his worst season of his career. He finished the year with a 6–8 record, 5.42 ERA, and 85 strikeouts in 118 innings.

Seattle Mariners On January 6, 2017, Gallardo was traded along with cash to the Seattle Mariners in exchange for Seth Smith. After struggling through the first half of the season for Seattle, Gallardo was moved to the bullpen on June 22. He was reinstated to the starting rotation in August due to his strong performance as a reliever and injuries to other Seattle starters. However, due to several poor appearances and new pitching acquisitions, he was relegated to the bullpen once more.

In 2017, he was 5–10, with a 5.72 ERA. He had his option declined on November 2 and became a free agent. The Brewers released him on March 26, 2018.

Cincinnati Reds On March 31, 2018, Gallardo signed a one-year contract with the Cincinnati Reds. He was designated for assignment on April 10, and elected free agency on April 12.

Texas Rangers (second stint) On April 13, 2018, Yovani Gallardo signed a minor-league contract with the Texas Rangers. He was called up on June 17 to replace Doug Fister in the rotation. He elected free agency on October 29.

Scouting report Gallardo had a five-pitch repertoire consisting of a four-seam fastball, a curveball, a slider, a changeup, and a cutter. His fastball was generally clocked between 92 and 95 mph, occasionally reaching as high as 96, the curve was thrown hard in the upper 70s to lower 80s, and the slider was usually in the mid-80s and had a late sharp break. When he was in the minors, his curveball was considered the best curveball in the minor leagues. He somewhat phased out his changeup in the later years of his career. He then began to throw a cutter in the upper 80s to supplement his changeup.

Personal life Gallardo is married. The couple has three children, including one pair of twins. They reside in Fort Worth, Texas.