Former Stanford baseball star John Gall got the call from the St. Francis High Athletics Hall of Fame. One day, Gall may hear from Stanford’s Athletics HOF.
Gall attended Stanford’s 2015 Hall of Fame induction ceremony, one which former teammate Kyle Peterson, an All-American hurler, was motioned in.
For now, Gall will settle for being a Hall of Fame Lancer, class of ’96.
“It was a great honor,” said Gall, who was raised in Portola Valley. “It reminded me of the days when I was an every-day athlete.”
Gall was one of the best football-baseball combo athletes to play for the Lancers, despite missing his junior year of football due to a knee injury.
Gall, a nimble quarterback, threw a 37-yard touchdown pass in the Central Coast Section Division I title game in 1995 to help beat Bellarmine, 21-17.
It was on the baseball diamond, however, where Gall excelled. He helped the Lancers to a CCS title as a junior. As a senior, Gall was the West Catholic Athletic League MVP, hitting .483 with 56 hits, 34 runs scored, 34 RBI and nine stolen bases. The Lancers lost in the CCS title game.
As a sophomore on varsity, Gall hit .352 with 23 RBI, scoring 28 runs, stealing 19 bases. On that team was Gall’s cousin, Eric Byrnes (’94), who went on to have a fine professional career.
“We had a few Division I guys on that team,” Gall said.
Gall earned a baseball scholarship to Stanford, where he established still-standing Pac-12 records in hits (368) and doubles (80). His best year was his sophomore season when he batted .381 with 63 RBI and 15 homers. Gall had 46 homers for his career.
Gall went to three College World Series with the Cardinal, making the all-tourney team as a junior.
Gall was drafted by the Cleveland Indians in the 50th round after his junior season, opting not to sign.
Gall returned for a fourth year, getting drafted in the 11th round by St. Louis.
Gall had 53 major league at-bats, ending with a career batting average of .245 with two homers.
The St. Louis Cardinals won the 2006 World Series and Gall was awarded a World Series ring. He ended his pro baseball career with the Florida Marlins in 2007.
Gall has lived a bit of a Forrest Gump existence. He hit a home run for Team USA in the 2008 Beijing Olympics against Chinese Taipei. Team USA went on to win the bronze medal.
“There was a lot of talent on that team,” Gall said. “Stephen Strasburg and Jake Arrieta were on that team.”
The September following the Olympics, Gall was one of six USA players invited to be on The Oprah Winfrey Show. He also received a visit to the White House. Gall is on the Board of Directors for Team USA.
Gall, who married St. Francis classmate Megan Jones, currently resides in Millbrae.
The Gall’s have two boys, Andrew and Johnny, who are getting some expertise coaching from their dad, needless to say.