Banged-up Rangers call Gallo back up

With their outfield beset by injuries, the Texas Rangers recalled No. 1 prospect Joey Gallo and center fielder Jared Hoying from the Triple-A Round Rock Express.

Gallo, who slashed .204/.301/.417 with six home runs and 57 strikeouts in 123 plate appearance over two stints with the big club last season, replaced veteran Drew Stubbs on the active roster. Stubbs sprained his left pinkie toe Sunday and was placed on the disabled list Monday.

Known for his prodigious power and high strikeout rate, Gallo has eight home runs and a .265/.415/.639 line in 106 plate appearances with Round Rock in 2016. After striking out in 37.2 percent of his at-bats across two levels in 2015, Gallo cut his strikeout rate to 22.6 percent this season without sacrificing any power -- he's tied for sixth in the Pacific Coast League in home runs and would lead the circuit in slugging percentage if he had enough at-bats to qualify. He was sidelined the first 18 days of the month with a groin strain.

MLB.com's No. 7 overall prospect also would rank second in the PCL in OPS with a 1.054 OPS -- behind only Tacoma's Stefen Romero -- while his walk rate (20.8 percent) stands atop the circuit.

Hoying, 27, replaced Shin-Soo Choo, who was placed on the 15-day disabled list with a strained left hamstring just three days after being activated. Choo had missed more than a month with a calf strain.

Hoying immediately got into the Rangers lineup for his Major League debut, playing left field and batting eighth Monday night. He posted a .319/.409/.550 line with seven homers and 32 RBIs (fourth in the PCL) and had amassed 10 RBIs in the past three games for the Express.