The Yankees have acquired OF Terrance Gore from the Kansas City Royals in exchange for cash considerations. He is not on the 40-man roster and will report to @swbrailriders. — NYYPlayerDev (@NYYPlayerDev) July 17, 2019
Another brilliant move by #Yankee GM Brian Cashman. They get Terrance Gore from the #Royals. Gore goes to AAA as depth and insurance. He will come up in September and win a game as a base runner. This is the kind of guy who might have been acquired in August in the past. — Steve Phillips (@StevePhillipsGM) July 17, 2019
I’m sorry, but acquiring Terrence Gore who was DFA’d, a speedy player that doesn’t need to be added to the Yankees 40-man roster, is NOT a “precursor” to moving Clint Frazier. Even if he is traded, this move had nothing to do with it. — Greedy Pinstripes (@GreedyStripes) July 17, 2019
Terrance Gore has 40 stolen bases in 100 big league games and has been caught just nine times. In the minors, the 28-year-old has swiped 293 bases in 665 games and has been caught 32 times. In 37 games at Triple-A this year, Gore slashed .275/.362/.353. — Conor Foley (@RailRidersTT) July 17, 2019
MY QUICK REACTION –
I do not believe this deal is anything other than a depth move, but you never know.
One concern the Yankees (obviously) have is the health of their outfielders. This year alone, Aaron Judge, Aaron Hicks, Giancarlo Stanton, Cameron Maybin, and Clint Frazier have been on the Injured List. Stanton and Maybin have still not returned. Having Gore, a speedy player, only adds to the depth they might need if one of the current starters (Hicks, Judge, or Brett Gardner) goes down with another injury.
That being said, while it seems like Gore is the perfect pinch-runner candidate for September, his addition does give the Yankees flexibility if they have to trade Clint Frazier. These players are not similar in any way, except for the fact that they play outfield, but because he adds depth, and the Yankees need depth, Gore does allow the Yankees the remote option of trading Frazier in a deal for a pitcher. I don’t think that will happen, but, with Brian Cashman, one never knows. If there is one thing that Cashman excels at is making great deals that no one sees coming.
Gore could be an interesting piece. I am intrigued by the possibilities he offers the Yankees.
For now, he looks like a September 1 call-up.
But, we’ll see…
