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Terrance Gore

Yankees Acquire Terrance Gore

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The Yankees announced today that they have acquired speedy outfielder Terrance Gore from the Royals. The deal sends cash considerations back to Kansas City.

Gore will not land on the New York 40-man, per the announcement. It seems that the deal was struck after he cleared waivers. Gore was designated for assignment recently.

The 28-year-old will open his tenure with the Yanks at Triple-A. No doubt he’ll wait there until the club has a need for a stolen-base threat and defensive specialist.

Gore, who swiped 13 bags this year in 37 games, will make for an intriguing potential postseason roster weapon for the Yanks. The fleet-footed baserunning expert has appeared in nine playoff games, logging five steals, despite taking just 19 total regular-season MLB plate appearances before the current season.

Royals Likely To Move Hamilton, Gore

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So much focus this time of the year is placed on the biggest names on the trade market. And while it’s understandable that everyone wants to know where Madison Bumgarner, Marcus Stroman and other players of that ilk will land, it’s also true that smaller-scale deals can often have considerable postseason ramifications. To that end, while neither move will generate much in the way of national headlines, it’s worth noting that the Royals are all but certain to trade both Billy Hamilton and Terrance Gore (who has already been designated for assignment) in the near future.

The switch-hitting Hamilton has recently been dropped to a backup role following the promotion of former top prospect Bubba Starling and hasn’t started a game since July 3. “There’s definitely interest out there,” Hamilton tells MLB.com’s Jeffrey Flanagan, noting that he’s regularly in touch with his agent about his future. It stands to reason, of course, that his representatives are in contact with the K.C. front office about Hamilton’s status.

As Hamilton further explains, Royals general manager Dayton Moore and the rest of the organization were professional and up-front with him about the fact that he’d lose playing time to Starling, giving him notice well in advance of the move: “I really appreciate it from [general manager] Dayton [Moore] all the way down. … I understand that that’s their guy. That’s part of the business.”

A trade of Hamilton seems likely and could come anytime between now and July 31. A move involving Gore might be even more immediate, though. The Royals designated Gore for assignment on July 12, which kicked off a seven-day period to either trade Gore, attempt to pass him through outright waivers or release him. As The Athletic’s Alec Lewis writes (subscription required), even if Gore hits waivers and goes unclaimed, Moore will likely find a way to place the speedster with a contender. Following Gore’s DFA, Moore said to reporters: “I told Terrance yesterday that when we signed him, we said, ‘Look, Terrance, if we’re not in this thing, we’ll look to find you a spot with a contending team so you can do your thing in October.”

Both 28 years of age, Hamilton and Gore are cut from the same cloth as elite baserunners and defenders who offer minimal value at the plate. Hamilton carries far more MLB experience, having spent a half decade as the Reds’ primary center fielder. However, while he authored four straight seasons with at least 56 stolen bases, he’s never even approached a league-average campaign with the bat. A career .243/.297/.327 hitter, Hamilton has only managed a .217/.284/.271 slash in his first season away from Cincinnati’s hitter-friendly Great American Ball Park. He’s earning $5.25MM in 2019, with $2.76MM yet to be paid out. And, as Flanagan adds, he could earn another another $1MM via plate-appearance-based incentives.

Gore, meanwhile, has never received any type of extended look in the big leagues. In fact, despite entering the 2019 season with 27 career stolen bases, Gore only had 19 plate appearances as a Major Leaguer. He’s been used almost exclusively as a pinch-runner and defensive replacement with the Royals and Cubs. To his credit, Gore batted .275/.362/.353 in 58 plate appearances this season — including a perfect 4-for-4 showing when attempting to bunt for a hit. He’s only a .221/.304/.271 hitter in Triple-A and a .257/.333/.277 hitter in Double-A, however, so it’s understandable that teams have been reluctant to give him a regular look in the game’s highest level.

Gore’s glove and wheels have frequently landed him on postseason rosters as a pinch-running specialist, but the elimination of August trades in 2019 means any team wishing to utilize him in that capacity will need to acquire him sooner than usual. Hamilton could land a similar role, but one would think that with his MLB experience, he’d be in line for a bit more playing time. The return in each deal will be minimal, but both players have the type of niche skill set that can impact both a playoff race and a postseason series. The greater question may be one of whether a contending team wants to carry either player for the final 10 weeks of the season. It’s possible, particularly with Gore, that other teams will show greater interest once he’s cleared waivers and can be acquired without immediately requiring a 40-man roster spot.

Royals Designate Terrance Gore For Assignment

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The Royals have designated outfielder Terrance Gore for assignment, tweets Alec Lewis of The Athletic. His roster spot will go to fellow outfielder Bubba Starling, whose promotion to the Major Leagues was announced by the Royals yesterday.

Gore, 28, was the surprise recipient of a big league contract with Kansas City this offseason, as the Royals built a roster teeming with speed and stolen base capabilities. Gore performed as well as could have been expected in an extremely limited role. One of baseball’s fastest players, Gore appeared in 37 games but tallied just 57 plate appearances. He turned in a solid .275/.362/.353 line in that brief set of work but provided most of his value as a pinch runner and defensive replacement; Gore went 13-for-18 in stolen base attempts and played 132 innings in the outfield with solid defensive marks.

However, carrying both Gore and Billy Hamilton in limited roles was likely deemed redundant by the front office. With Starling likely ticketed for regular playing time, that arrangement would’ve been the only way to keep Gore on the roster. He’ll fall victim to the DFA hammer, then, with Kansas City opting to keep Hamilton despite the fact that he hasn’t produced whatsoever at the plate (.217/.284/.271 in 267 plate appearances). Veteran first baseman Lucas Duda, too, appeared a potential risk for losing his roster spot but will outlast Gore and stick around for the time being.

AL Central Notes: Adrianza, Twins, Salazar, Royals, Beckham

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With eight games until the end of Spring Training, infielder Ehire Adrianza isn’t assured of a spot on the Twins’ Opening Day roster, writes LaVelle E. Neal III of the Minneapolis Star Tribune. Adrianza is out of minor league options, so if he doesn’t break camp with the club he’d be exposed to outright waivers. Minnesota’s addition of Marwin Gonzalez and the emergence of Willians Astudillo have left Adrianza without a clear role. Gonzalez will open the season as the primary third baseman while Miguel Sano rehabs a foot injury, but the Twins could go with a bench consisting of catcher Mitch Garver, outfielder Jake Cave, first baseman Tyler Austin (also out of minor league options) and Astudillo. Cave has options remaining, and Gonzalez can play the outfield, but they’d be rather thin on outfielders if Cave opened the year in Triple-A. Adrianza has enjoyed a nice spring, but he’s in a tough spot at the moment. He’s set to earn $1.3MM after avoiding arbitration, but they’d only owe him about $315K of that sum if they cut him loose between now and Opening Day. If he hits waivers, another club would have to take on that $1.3MM salary in order to claim him.

More from the division…

  • Danny Salazar’s progress in his recovery from 2018 shoulder surgery has “skyrocketed” in the past 10 to 14 days, Indians manager Terry Francona said Monday (link via Paul Hoynes of the Cleveland Plain Dealer). Salazar had slogged through a pair of “down weeks” but has quickly bounced back to the point where he’s playing long toss from a distance of 180 feet. There’s still no clear timetable as to when Salazar will reemerge as a bullpen option in Cleveland — Corey Kluber, Trevor Bauer, Carlos Carrasco, Mike Clevinger and Shane Bieber have rotation spots locked down — but if healthy, he’d add a big arm to a relief corps that is lacking in established arms behind closer Brad Hand.
  • The Royals are still trying to determine which of the several right field options they have in camp will make the roster, writes Rustin Dodd of The Athletic (subscription required). Manager Ned Yost has said that Jorge Soler will be in the lineup nearly everyday, splitting time between DH and right field, but the Royals still have Brian Goodwin, Brett Phillips and Jorge Bonifacio as candidates for significant innings in right. None of that trio has had a good spring, however, and Goodwin is out of minor league options. Terrance Gore, on the active roster after signing a big league deal this winter, is viewed as more of a bench option than a candidate to log many starts in the outfield. There will likely be occasional at-bats at the other outfield slots, but Alex Gordon and Billy Hamilton will get the bulk of the playing time in left field and center field, respectively. Dodd ultimately runs through the entire lineup and pitching staff in making his projections as to which 25 players will break camp and comprise the Opening Day roster.
  • Gordon Beckham spoke with Chris McCosky of the Detroit News about his transformation from lauded top prospect to a journeyman bouncing from minor league deal to minor league deal. In camp with the Tigers on a minor league pact, Beckham was candid in discussing his ups and downs and many of the difficult moments he’s faced in his career. Struggling for the first time in his career at the big league level with the White Sox, Beckham said the pressure to meet expectations “mentally crushed” him. He had even weighed whether he’d continue his playing career if he failed to land a big league job this spring, reflecting that it’s “crazy to think I have to make this decision.” However, as McCosky outlines, he actually may not have to make that decision. Manager Ron Gardenhire has been impressed by Beckham this spring, spoken fondly of the veteran infielder, and expressed a desire for additional veteran middle-infield depth. All of that seemingly bodes well for Beckham, who entered play Monday hitting .314/.429/.429 in 42 plate appearances this spring.

Royals Sign Terrance Gore, Designate Rosell Herrera

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The Royals announced today that they have inked a deal with outfielder Terrance Gore. Meanwhile, utilityman Rosell Herrera was designated for assignment to create roster space.

Gore has secured a one-year, MLB pact that comes with a split salary, per MLB.com’s Jeffrey Flanagan (via Twitter). He will earn at a $350K rate in the minors and a $650K rate in the big leagues.

The 27-year-old Gore is a five-year MLB veteran, but has taken just 19 plate appearances at the game’s highest level. While he’s valued for his blistering speed and instincts on the bases and in the field, Gore has a track record of abysmal offensive numbers in the minors.

Given that profile, it’s a bit of a surprise to see the out-of-options Gore occupying a 40-man roster spot for a Royals club that seems to have little hope of near-term contention. That’s all the more true given that the club already added speed demon Billy Hamilton, who is expected to command the bulk of the playing time in center.

When the Royals inked Hamilton, they emphasized the need to cover ground at hitter-friendly Kauffman Stadium, so perhaps there’s a niche for Gore as well if the club decides to take things to an extreme position. (He’d be a platoon match for the left-handed-hitting Hamilton, it’s worth noting.) Certainly, the K.C. team knows him as well as anyone, having employed him exclusively since 2011, excepting a late-2018 run with the Cubs. If Gore does ultimately end up on the big league roster, he’ll pair with Hamilton, Whit Merrifield and Adalberto Mondesi to give manager Ned Yost a fleet-footed quartet that is unparalleled in terms of raw speed and baserunning ability.

As for Herrera, 26, he’s capable of lining up just about anywhere defensively, but hasn’t generally shown much with the bat. He slashed .234/.286/.317 in his first 302 MLB plate appearances last year. That said, Herrera has at times exhibited promising plate discipline as well as speed and even some power (16 home runs in 2013), so it’s still possible he’ll put some things together and emerge as a worthwhile MLB performer.

Cubs Outright Gore, Freeman; Claim Jack Reinheimer From Mets

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The Cubs announced today that they have outrighted outfielder Terrance Gore and infielder Mike Freeman from the 40-man roster. Meanwhile, the club has added infielder Jack Reinheimer via waiver claim from the Mets.

Gore and Freeman were each added to the Chicago 40-man owing to late-season considerations. The former is a standout baserunner, the latter a quality defender. Both players appear to qualify as minor-league free agents.

Reinheimer, meanwhile, is a 26-year-old utilityman who is capable of lining up at shortstop. He showed some life at the plate in a 16-game run with the Mets’ top affiliate late last year, though he has mostly been a palatable-but-unexciting hitter at the Triple-A level, with a .278/.343/.371 slash in 1,376 total plate appearances.

Quick Hits: Gore, Trout, Zobrist, Orioles

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After spending parts of five seasons in the big leagues, Terrance Gore finally collected his first Major League hit, notching a single during the Cubs’ 10-3 loss to the Nationals yesterday in the first game of a double-header.  Though Gore has appeared in 55 games since the start of the 2014 season, he has only 16 career plate appearances due to his exclusive usage as a pinch-runner and late-inning defensive sub.  Gore’s speed made him a valuable roster piece during the Royals’ two postseason runs in 2014 and 2015, and he’ll likely see similar work for the Cubs down the stretch this season and potentially into October.

Here’s more from around the baseball world…

  • The Angels are expected to approach Mike Trout about an extension this winter, which The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal (subscription required) feels could determine whether or not the team would ever consider trading the game’s best player.  Management has been adamantly opposed to the thought of dealing Trout in the past, and the general feeling is that Arte Moreno wouldn’t okay a Trout trade as long as he owns the Angels.  If Trout declines an extension or gives an indication that he’ll test free agency when his current contract is up after the 2020 season, however, Rosenthal feels that the Angels “would know where they stood” in counting the superstar outfielder as part of their long-term plans.  The Halos could still just aim to build around Trout over the next two seasons or, conceivably, at least think about the possibility of a trade that could instantly add a lot of young talent to the Angels’ organization.  “One of the best talents in the history of the game is rarely explored in the market. A team might be willing to do something absolutely insane to acquire him. We just don’t know,” one rival executive said about a potential Trout trade.
  • As you might expect, Ben Zobrist has no regrets about signing with the Cubs in the 2015-16 offseason, the veteran super-utilityman tells The Athletic’s Patrick Mooney.  The decision has already led to one World Series ring for Zobrist, and unlike his other suitors that winter (a list that includes the Giants, Mets, and Nationals), the Cubs are still postseason contenders in 2018.  Zobrist has strongly rebounded from a down year in 2017 to hit .313/.387/.458 over 443 PA for the Cubs this season, so it’s fair to say that the team is also quite satisfied in its decision giving Zobrist a four-year, $56MM deal that winter.
  • The Orioles are lacking in multi-positional players, Eduardo A. Encina of the Baltimore Sun writes, giving the team yet another area to address as it enters a rebuild period.  Not even any of the players acquired by the O’s in their deadline deals looks like a candidate for such a role in the future, though the team will be looking at what Jonathan Villar, Breyvic Valera, and Steve Wilkerson can do at multiple positions.

Cubs Designate Luke Farrell, Rob Zastryzny

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The Cubs have a pair of roster casualties today amidst their first round of September call-ups: right-hander Luke Farrell and left-hander Rob Zastryzny have been designated for assignment in order to clear room on the roster for outfielder Terrance Gore and infielder Taylor Davis, whose contracts have been selected from Triple-A Iowa.

Farrell has done more harm than good for the 2018 Cubs team; his 5.17 ERA and 5.19 FIP are nearly identical, indicating he hasn’t shown the skills required of an effective major-league pitcher. While his ability to miss bats (11.20 K/9) might disagree with that assumption to some extent, his command issues (4.60 BB/9) strengthens the case that he isn’t a useful major-league piece at this time. His biggest woes come from the fact that he’s an extreme fly-ball pitcher (30.6% ground-ball rate) who allows an excess of homers (17.5% homer-to-fly-ball ratio).

The 26-year-old Zastryzny has seen less of an extended look at the MLB level, but showed even less promise than Farrell in that small sample. He’s allowed three earned runs while walking four batters in a 5 2/3 inning sample size, and while it’s perhaps unfair to draw many conclusions from that limited opportunity, his 2018 Triple-A performance doesn’t necessarily help his cause. While the 3.86 ERA he posted in 56 innings there might seem serviceable on the surface, the 4.68 FIP and 4.52 xFIP lurking underneath paint an entirely different picture. He also walked a batter every other inning on average while with Iowa.

Cubs Acquire Terrance Gore

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The Cubs have acquired outfielder Terrance Gore from the Royals, per an announcement from the Kansas City organization. Cash considerations will head back in return.

Gore, 27, will presumably reprise his role as a late-season/postseason threat on the bases. No doubt he’ll begin his tenure with the Chicago organization in the upper minors, where he has typically resided until rosters expand in September.

Since first cracking the majors in 2014, the light-hitting Gore has taken only 14 plate appearances at the game’s highest level. But he has appeared in 49 total games and racked up 21 steals.

Of course, utilizing a specialist in that manner only requires the commitment of a 40-man spot once rosters have expanded. For the time being, the Cubs won’t even need to tie up a slot on Gore, who had re-joined the Royals on a minors deal over the winter after being cut loose last fall.

Whether or not Gore could also feature on the Cubs’ presumptive postseason roster remains to be seen. The Royals carried him throughout the 2014 and 2015 postseasons, up to but not including the club’s successful return to the World Series in the second of those two memorable campaigns. Despite being in uniform for quite a few contests, Gore has only appeared in eight total playoff games, stealing four bags but never striding to the plate.

Minor MLB Transactions: 12/2/17

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We’ll keep track of some recent minor moves here…

  • The Indians have agreed to a new minor league contract with utility player Michael Martinez, Robert Murray of FanRag Sports tweets. Martinez, now 35, has played at or below replacement level for every single season of his seven-year major league career, combining for a total of 2.4 wins below replacement level. Originally a rule 5 draft pick of the Phillies, he is perhaps most famous for being the final out for the Indians in the 2016 World Series. Martinez has accumulated 621 plate appearances for his career and has put up a .194/.243/.261 slash line.
  • The Royals have re-signed Terrance Gore to a minor league contract after non-tendering the outfielder yesterday, according to a tweet from Rustin Dodd of the Kansas City Star. The 26-year-old’s speed is biggest asset; he’s accrued more stolen bases (21) than plate appearances (14) over the course of his major league career. He was utilized exclusively as a pinch-runner during the Royals’ 2014 and 2015 playoff runs, swiping four key bags in the postseason during those years without ever picking up a bat. Gore has yet to pick up his first major league hit, but he’s still managed 0.2 WAR for his career due to his baserunning skills.
  • Robert Murray of FanRag Sports reports that the Rockies have signed right-hander Chris Jensen to a minor-league pact (Twitter link). Jensen, 27, was originally Colorado’s sixth-round pick in the 2011 draft. He spent three seasons in the lower minors with the Rockies before being shipped to the A’s along with Drew Pomeranz in exchange for Brett Anderson. Jensen made seven starts and 23 relief appearances for the A’s Triple-A affiliate in 2017, and accrued an equal number of strikeouts and earned runs (56) across 84 2/3 innings pitched.

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