The
Reebok advertisement fills page 33 in the Official Souvenir Program
of the 2011 Perfect Game All-American Classic presented by Rawlings.
The
ad pictures Detroit Tigers All-Star right-hander Justin Verlander
holding out a Reebok Pro Cooperstown Zig Cleat, an innovative
baseball shoe Reebok is marketing with a certain fervor. As part of
that marketing effort, the company jumped into a sponsorship role at
the PG All-American Classic, which included the naming rights to one
of Perfect Game’s national awards.
This
year’s winner of the Reebok Offensive Player of the Year Award went
to Henderson, Nev., left-handed slugger and top national prospect
Joey Gallo.
Reebok’s
involvement with the All-American Classic and as the sponsor of the
Offensive Player of the Year Award seemed to benefit everyone.
“It
was important for Reebok to partner with the 2011 Perfect Game
All-American Baseball Classic. It allowed us to show our dedication
to the sport of baseball at the amateur level,” Reebok Sports
Marketing, Baseball Associate Manager Ryan Tappin said in an e-mail
to Perfect Game. “The talent each player brought to the game was
unparalleled with any other baseball showcase. It truly was the best
of the best competing in this event.”
Tappin
explained it was also an excellent opportunity for Reebok to showcase
their baseball product line, including the Pro Cooperstown Zig Cleat
– all of the All-Americans received a pair of the shoes – and the
company’s O-Bat technology. Reebok held a product forum to discuss
the products with the players, and Tappin said that “all feedback
was overwhelmingly positive.”
Gallo’s
selection as the 2011 Reebok Offensive Player of the Year was
certainly warranted. His junior season at Las Vegas Bishop Gorman
High School was phenomenal – he hit .471 (57-for-121) with 25 home
runs, 76 RBI and 64 runs scored – and helped Bishop Gorman win its
sixth straight Nevada Class 4A state championship.
While
at June’s Perfect Game National Showcase in Fort Myers, Fla., the
6-5, 205-pound third baseman almost sounded apologetic when he spoke
about his 25 home runs in 39 games.
“I
was using a metal bat and the pitching wasn’t like you’ll see
here, but I was starting to find my groove a little bit,” Gallo
said. “When you start finding your groove you can start launching a
little bit. At the beginning of the season I was struggling a little
bit, but then you start to find your place and you start to relax at
the plate. That’s when I really started hitting them out.”
Gallo
hit .474 with 15 home runs, 62 RBI and 41 runs scored during his
sophomore season (2010), so it wasn’t as if he didn’t start to
hit until his junior campaign. But he admitted he did a lot of
growing up between his sophomore and junior years in high school.
“I
definitely matured as a player in many ways,” Gallo said at the PG
National. “I feel like I’ve become faster with more power, and
I’m definitely better in the mental part of the game. I can relax a
little bit in pressure situations with a lot of people watching.”
One
of those situations arrived at the Perfect Game All-American Classic
when, batting cleanup in the West team’s order, he led-off the
bottom of the second inning with the eyes of more than 7,900 people
in attendance at PETCO Park trained on him.
With
East right-hander Lucas Sims dealing from the mound, Gallo connected
with a 93 mph Sims fastball and drove it 442 feet into right-center.
It is the longest home run ever hit in the nine-year history of the
All-American Classic and the 10th longest hit at PETCO, the San Diego Padres’ home for the past eight
years.
Gallo,
the No. 4-ranked national prospect and top-ranked third base prospect
(2012), was named the Classic’s Most Valuable Player.
“This
is one of the coolest experiences I’ve ever had. Just playing with
these guys has been great,” Gallo said after accepting the MVP
trophy from former Padres’ All-Star closer Trevor Hoffman. “It’s
always an honor playing with these guys, and I know most of them from
Team USA and all the other stuff we do together doing the summer.”
His
selection as Reebok Offensive Player of the Year came before he hit
the long home run and was named the Classic’s MVP. Those
distinctions only solidified the choice.
“Choosing
the offensive player of the year wasn’t an easy task,” Reebok’s
Tappin said. “A genuine argument could be made for several
deserving players, however when it was all said and done, Reebok felt
Joey had shown consistency and power time and time again.”
Gallo
also pitches, and possesses a fastball that reaches the mid-90s. He
has committed to LSU and has been slotted as a potential two-way guy.
“I
like doing both because I feel like I do both pretty well. If it
comes down to the point where I need to one or the other, I’d
rather hit, but whatever makes the money, that’s what I’m going
to do,” he said with a laugh and a smile.
About Reebok:
Reebok
International Ltd., headquartered in Canton, MA, USA, is a leading
worldwide designer, marketer and distributor of sports, fitness and
casual footwear, apparel equipment. A subsidiary of a adidas Group,
the company operates under the multiple divisions of the Reebok
brand, Reebok-CCM Hockey and the Sports Licensed Division. For more
information, visit Reebok are www.reebok.com and
www.reebok.com/women.