Yankees acquire outfielder Terrance Gore from Royals

The Yankees made a minor move today, acquiring outfielder/speed demon Terrance Gore from the Royals in exchange for cash considerations. Gore will not be placed on the 40-man roster, and instead will be sent to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre.

The 28-year-old fits best on the Yankees’ roster (or any roster, really) as a September pinch-runner, as he essentially cannot hit. His career slash line sits at .224/.325/.284 in 77 plate appearances, while his career line in the minors is equally miserable at .239/.333/.273. For what it’s worth, Gore is having his best season at the plate in 2019, managing a .715 OPS in 58 plate appearances.

Of course, Gore is known not for his bat but for his speed. He’s stolen 40 bases in 49 tries in the majors, to go along with 293 steals at a 90-percent success rate in the minors. That said, just as his bat has shown a little bit more life this season, his prowess on the bases has waned, as Gore has been thrown out five times in 18 tries in 2019. He still has 99-percentile sprint speed according to Statcast, which I suppose demonstrates that pure agility doesn’t always translate to excellent baserunning.

If Gore does end up receiving a September call-up to try and swipe some bases, he could theoretically impinge on the playing time of Cameron Maybin and Tyler Wade, players whose elite speed could come in handy on an expanded roster but won’t get much run otherwise on the Yankees’ loaded squad. Time will tell if some pennant race pinch-running is in Gore’s future.