Former MLB speedster Terrance Gore dies at age 34

Terrence Gore, a dynamic baserunner whose speed dominated postseason games for the better part of a decade, has died at the age of 34. kansas city royals The announcement was made on Saturday.

According to USA Today, his wife, Brittany Gore, posted on social media that Gore died from complications following routine surgery. He leaves behind three children.

“It was very sad to wake up and hear this,” he said. dodgers‘Dave Roberts, one of several major league managers who deployed Gore as a pinch runner during his career. “He was as confident as I had ever been.”

Eric Hosmer was Gore’s teammate with the Royals.

“Absolutely brutal news,” he wrote. “A great teammate.”

Gore played in 85 plate appearances during his big-league career and batted .216. But for some of September and October, he led the majors while instilling fear because of his speed. He was often added to the roster at the end of the regular season – first by the Royals and later by chicago cubsDodgers and New York Mets – Serving as a pinch runner, usually in the last innings of close games. He played in the big leagues over parts of eight seasons and in only 112 regular-season games and 11 more games in the postseason, he stole 48 bases in 58 attempts.

When Buck Showalter was successful against Gore baltimore orioles Gore faced the Royals in the playoffs and added Gore to their roster when he was with the Mets in 2022.

“I called him to talk to him about what his role would be, but he already knew,” Showalter said. “He was such a weapon. He fit in well. He didn’t take himself too seriously.”

Gore took batting practice daily and worked in the outfield before games. But Gore and his teammates knew how he would be used – if his team trailed by one run in the final inning, or if the score was tied, he would be sent into the game as a pinch runner.

“If the score was tied and you got him running in the game, it felt like the game was over,” Showalter said.

Showalter noted that players such as Gore and Deion Sanders varied in their degree of speed. Some players are faster, Showalter said, but when Gore ran, he was in second gear.

“We knew we couldn’t throw him out,” he recalled. “He had a light slider, and then we’d try to get him off base with the tag. [since he sometimes popped up after reaching a base]. But if you just tried to throw him out, forget it, it wasn’t going to happen.”

when roberts played with it boston red sox In 2004, he famously played the same role that Gore had played during his career, notably stealing bases against Mariano Rivera and New York Yankees in the playoffs before making the decisive tying run. Roberts talked to Gore about it when the player joined the Dodgers in 2020.

“He knew exactly what I meant,” Roberts said. “He was a good fellow.”

Gore was born and raised in Georgia, and after playing for Gulf Coast State College in Panama, Florida, he was selected by the Royals in the 20th round of the 2011 draft, the 606th player overall. In the Minors, Gore had a batting average of .237 and on-base percentage of .334 – he hit one home run in 2,585 plate appearances. But he could run.

“His speed was amazing,” former Royals GM Dayton Moore texted. “He was fearless on base. He was in control of the matchup. [on the bases] – I was always worried that he might hurt himself because he slid into the base late and hard.”

Moore recalled that he thought about quitting when Gore was playing in Single-A ball, but Mike Sweeney and Lonnie Goldberg of the Royals organization talked him out of it.

“He wasn’t satisfied with just being known for stealing bases,” Moore said. “He worked extremely hard trying to be an everyday guy.”