Joey Gallo posts on Instagram about meeting with slain Dallas police officer

Texas Rangers outfielder prospect Joey Gallo was affected more deeply by the killing of five Dallas police officers Thursday than most people.

Five officers were killed in a shooting that took place during a Black Lives Matter protest in Dallas. One of the deceased officers is Patrick Zamarripa, who actually stopped Gallo and fellow Rangers youngster Nomar Mazara for a photo a few months ago.

On Friday, Gallo posted the photo from their encounter and recapped what happened in a touching note shared on Instagram:

A couple months ago @nomazara26 and I were walking down the street in downtown Dallas. When an officer stopped us, Mazara and I immediately became nervous, "I know who you guys are" he said. "Joey Gallo and Nomar Mazara, can I get a picture with you guys please?" It was definitely a first for me and Nomar to have an officer, a true hero, want to meet us. His name is Patrick Zamarripa, one of the officers killed in last nights shootings in Dallas. I'll never forget how kind and down to Earth he was. We ended up having a 15 minute conversation about sports with him. He was an avid Rangers fan. But more importantly a great person, and family man. Please keep Patrick, and all the officers affected and their families in our prayers today. #prayfordallas

A photo posted by Joey Gallo (@joeygallo24) on Jul 8, 2016 at 2:09pm PDT

Zamarripa was a big sports fan. Here’s a photo of him also posing with Dez Bryant, “Throwing up The X” for Dez.

Awesome pic w/ Patrick, @JoeyGallo24 & @NomarMzra26. He LOVED DFW sports. Texted me this pic night he met @DezBryant pic.twitter.com/JLNmZhgBdL

— Ben Rogers (@BenRogers) July 8, 2016