Ben Gamel

WTM’s PLAYER PROFILE

2010
R:  280/357/320, 25 AB, 1 2B, 3 BB, 8 K, 1-3 SB

Gamel debuted very briefly in the GCL after signing late.

2011
A-:  289/373/432, 190 AB, 19 2B, 1 3B, 2 HR, 24 BB, 50 K, 7-9 SB

The Yankees sent Gamel to the New York-Penn League, where he played right field.  He had a good season, with gap power and reasonably good patience.

2012
A:  306/342/394, 444 AB, 23 2B, 5 3B, 2 HR, 23 BB, 71 K, 19-29 SB

Splitting his time between left and center, Gamel had a solid season in low A.  He hit for average, but not for power and his walk rate dropped sharply.

2013
A+:  272/352/396, 364 AB, 28 2B, 4 3B, 3 HR, 48 BB, 77 K, 21-26 SB
AA:  239/282/343, 67 AB, 4 2B, 1 HR, 4 BB, 18 K, 1-1 SB

Gamel spent most of the season in the Florida State League.  Considering the tough environment — the league slugged .370 — he hit fairly well.  He more than doubled his walk rate and had surprising success stealing base.  The Yankees played him mostly in left.

2014
AA:  261/308/340, 544 AB, 31 2B, 3 3B, 2 HR, 36 BB, 88 K, 13-18 SB

In AA, Gamel didn’t hit especially well, with everything falling off.  He again played mostly left, with a little time in center.

2015
AAA:  300/358/472, 500 AB, 28 2B, 14 3B, 10 HR, 46 BB, 108 K, 13-18 SB

Gamel had something of a breakout season in AAA, showing much more power than previously.  He played mainly in center.  The Yankees added Gamel to their 40-man roster after the season and Baseball America ranked him the #21 prospect in their system.

2016
AAA (NYY):  308/365/420, 483 AB, 26 2B, 5 3B, 6 HR, 43 BB, 94 K, 19-27 SB
MLB (NYY):  125/222/125, 8 AB, 1 BB, 1 K
MLB (Sea):  200/289/325, 40 AB, 2 2B, 1 HR, 5 BB, 15 K

Gamel spent most of the season in AAA, where he hit about the same as the previous year, but with less power.  He made his debut with the Yankees in May, but at the end of August they traded him to Seattle.  He played mostly center in the minors and right in the majors.

2017
AAA:  300/427/400, 60 AB, 1 2B, 1 3B, 1 HR, 12 BB, 11 K, 1-2 SB
MLB:  275/322/413, 509 AB, 27 2B, 5 3B, 11 HR, 36 BB, 122 K, 4-5 SB

Gamel spent most of the season as Seattle’s regular left fielder.  His hitting was average for a major leaguer, producing a 100 OPS+.

2018
A+:  294/429/353, 17 AB, 1 2B, 4 BB, 2 K, 1-2 SB
AAA:  349/415/554, 83 AB, 8 2B, 3 3B, 1 HR, 10 BB, 12 K, 4-4 SB
MLB:  272/358/370, 257 AB, 14 2B, 4 3B, 1 HR, 31 BB, 61 K, 7-10 SB

Gamel was hurt at the start of the season, but moved up to Seattle after a rehab.  He hit about the same as the previous year, with less power and more walks.  His playing time was reduced and he spent August in AAA.  He split his time between the outfield corners.  After the season, Seattle traded him to Milwaukee.

2019
AAA:  286/474/500, 14 AB, 1 HR, 4 BB, 3 K, 1-1 SB
MLB:  248/337/373, 311 AB, 18 2B, 7 HR, 40 BB, 104 K, 2-4 SB

Gamel spent nearly all the season with the Brewers, serving as a fourth outfielder.  He played all three spots, but mostly left.  His hitting fell off a little.

2020
MLB:  237/315/404, 114 AB, 8 2B, 1 3B, 3 HR, 13 BB, 39 K, 0-2 SB

Gamel was the Brewers’ primary right fielder during the pandemic season.  He hit for a little more power but didn’t get on base as much.  Milwaukee non-tendered him after the season and he became a free agent.  Cleveland signed him to a minor league deal.

2021
AAA (Cleve):  600/600/800, 5 AB, 1 2B, 1-1 SB
MLB (Cleve):  071/235/143, 14 AB, 1 2B, 3 BB, 6 K
MLB:  255/352/399, 326 AB, 17 2B, 3 3B, 8 HR, 48 BB, 99 K, 3-9 SB

The Indians added Gamel to their roster at the end of spring training.  He played very little and was designated for assignment in early May.  The Pirates claimed him off waivers, as their outfield situation had been a continuous fiasco.  They’d been alternating between outfielders who struggled to hit .100 and infielders who didn’t hit much more and had fielding mishaps.  Gamel played more or less regularly, mostly in left but a fair amount in right and center as well.  He had a huge month of July, but otherwise hit at a mediocre level.  His monthly OPS, starting with May, was .613 .676 .946 .656 .722.  The notion seemed to set in based on his big month in July that he should be a fixture in the middle of the lineup, but he’s mostly hit at a level that’s appropriate maybe for a fourth outfielder.  His overall hitting in 2021 was remarkably consistent with the rest of his career; his OPS has been between .710 and .735 in all five of the seasons in which he got significant major league playing time.  Another important factor is that Gamel had a big platoon split, with a .777 OPS against RHPs and .623 against LHPs, although he hasn’t had a platoon split over his career.  The fielding metrics are split:  UZR has him as above average in the corners, Outs Above Average as a little below.

2022
AAA:  226/314/355, 31 AB, 1 2B, 1 HR, 2 BB, 6 K
MLB:  232/324/369, 371 AB, 20 2B, 2 3B, 9 HR, 48 BB, 98 K, 5-6 SB

Other than being out from late May to early July with a hamstring injury, Gamel was an everyday player for the Pirates.  He played both outfield corners and also started five times at first.  Gamel again had one good month, this time May, and otherwise didn’t hit much.  It’s a measure of the Pirates’ obsession with veterans that, while they frequently sat out their younger players, Gamel played virtually every day, except when he was hurt, until the last couple weeks of the season, despite the fact that he was due to become a free agent after the season.

There’s no reason for the Pirates to try to bring Gamel back for 2023.  In two seasons with them, he had an OPS+ of exactly 100.  For a corner outfielder, or even a fourth outfielder, that’s not good.