Joey Gallo went back to work (on his PS4) nearly twenty-four hours after sweeping the competition on Sunday. Monday’s slate included all four opponents who came into Monday .500 or better. Coming into Monday’s action, there were only four players Joey hadn’t played who are better than .500 (13 games remaining), two of those players were matchups in Monday’s games (Tatis Jr. and Giolito). Joey looked to keep riding the train and dominating the tournament.

Hang with @JoeyGallo24 tonight!

🎮: https://t.co/noPHObTtl2 pic.twitter.com/sCpCN1JZxr

— Texas Rangers (@Rangers) April 20, 2020

Game 17: Padres (Fernando Tatis Jr.) at Rangers (Joey Gallo)

If you like offense, this matchup brought an attack to the viewership. Gallo entered Monday’s action averaging about 5.8 runs per game while Tatis entered averaging 5.6 runs a game (Tatis played four fewer games). The offense started with a bang on a Manny Machado solo home run. Gallo answered back quickly with a double by himself and then a triple by Willie Calhoun (just missed a glove and the wall). After a scoreless top of the second, Hunter Cole became the hero in the bottom of the inning. A Cole go-ahead single put Joey on top 2-1 heading into the final inning. It was a difficult decision to put Nick Goody in to close the game rather than Leclerc. “I don’t think Leclerc has the stamina to get me through an inning,” Joey said during the stream. However, a last-second choice brought Leclerc to face Tatis Jr with the tying run ninety feet away with two outs. Tatis Jr. made him pay with a game-tying double to even the game at two. Leave it up for Big Willie, who hit his tenth big fly of the tournament and walked it off for Joey and the Rangers.

Joey playing as Willie in The Show.

Name a better duo, we'll wait. pic.twitter.com/qkGJ6NaB3e

— Texas Rangers (@Rangers) April 21, 2020

Game 18: Rangers (Joey Gallo) at White Sox (Lucas Giolito)

Joey and Willie keep going head-to-head to top the home run lead on the Rangers. After Willie hit his tenth to win the previous game, Joey belted a solo shot with himself to add his ninth home run of the tourney. Giolito tied the game at one with three straight hits, but a double play ended the White Sox threat. The offensive production was limited with three consecutive scoreless half innings until Tim Anderson walked it off with a solo home run to win. Lucas Giolito handed Joey Gallo his second loss of the tournament (the other loss also by one run). For the record, Anderson did bat-flip to win the game (according to Giolito).

Game 19: Diamondbacks (Jon Duplantier) at Rangers (Joey Gallo)

Once again, the game starts with a top of the first inning home run, this time by Eduardo Escobar to put Duplantier up 1-0. Duplantier made Lance Lynn throw sixteen pitches, a rarity in MLB the Show with the aggressiveness of most of the competition. Joey’s offense answered quickly with four hits and two runs to take a 2-1 lead after the first inning against Madison Bumgarner. However, Jon’s squad promptly tied it up with a Nick Ahmed solo home run to the left. The second inning ended with a nifty behind the back flip by Rougned Odor that didn’t amuse Joey. “I don’t think Woody is going to like that. It’s not the All-Star game,” said a chuckling Gallo. Duplantier took the lead on a Christian Walker two-run home run and put Gallo into another hole late in the third inning. It was a breeze bottom of the inning for Duplantier, and Joey suffered something he hadn’t all tournament, two losses in one night.

the second night of back-to-back are not fond to Joey Gallo. A 2-run homer by Christian Walker and Jon Duplantier defeats Joey Gallo 4-2. Big Joe still 16-3 #Rangers pic.twitter.com/x6pIyHGNjB

— Alex Plinck (@aplinckTX) April 21, 2020

Game 20: Rangers (Joey Gallo) at Brewers (Josh Hader)

The old Joey Gallo Rangers offense came cracking to start with a two-run home run by Danny Santana and another two-run shot by Todd Frazier. In the top of the second inning, Ronald Guzman launched a screamer to dead center to extend Gallo’s lead to 5-0 and back to his old self with three home runs. After Hader loaded the bases with one out, Ryan Braun came in with the tying run on deck. Braun ended up hitting into a 5-2-3 double play, something that infielders are taught NOT to do, but the inning concluded scoreless. The “Toddfather” made his presence know with a three-run home run and the fourth homer of the game to extend the lead to 8-0. Hader scratched a few runs in the bottom of the third, but the deficit was too much to overcome for the Brewers hard-thrower reliever.

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The tournament is draining on Joey. “We’re in the dog days of the [tournament], game eighteen.” Gallo said during the Rangers/Diamondbacks game. The good news is that it’ll be a few days until the quick three-game Thursday matchup for Joey. Gallo’s Thursday games will include a tough matchup against the Mets’ Jeff McNeil (11-3), followed by Brett Phillips of the Royals  (6-6) and Carl Edwards Jr. of the Mariners (3-11).  Once Thursday’s action concludes, six games remain for Joey’s crusade to sit atop the top seed in the tournament.