Terrance Gore’s Record-Breaking Speed:
The Kansas City Royals announced on Friday, February 6, that Terrance Gore, one of the few Major Leaguers to truly make an impression with the game's most explosive weapon—blazing speed—had passed away.
Terrance Gore was only thirty-four. His wife, Brittany, said on social media that he passed away as a result of complications following a routine surgery. His spouse and their three kids survive him.
In addition to being a dynamic personality and a well-respected teammate, Terrance Gore ‘s remarkable speed kept him in the Major Leagues for eight seasons and enabled him to accomplish a unique accomplishment that any player would value: winning the 2015 World Series with the Royals in just his second big-league season, even though he had not yet recorded his first Major League hit.
Actually, it wasn’t until his fifth season with the Chicago Cubs in 2018 that Terrance Gore recorded his first Major League hit. Max Scherzer, a future Hall of Famer, hit that single up the middle.
During their two-year run as American League champions, the small-market Royals, always searching for innovative ways to gain an advantage, deployed Gore as a designated runner, a move that eventually paid off with the 2015 championship. Gore once ran the 40-yard dash in an incredible 4.29 seconds.
It was almost hard to catch him. Early in his career, Gore stole 17 bases in his first 17 attempts (albeit he was caught once during the postseason). In 2016, Cleveland catcher Roberto Pérez eventually threw him out.
As a member of a Royals club that somehow brought back the speed-and-defense character of the 1980s in the contemporary power-ball age, Gore was already a cult hero in Kansas City. The Royals managed to defeat baseball’s titans and win their first title in three decades under the leadership of All-Star Lorenzo Cain and with help from Jarrod Dyson and Gore.
Dyson famously created the phrase, “That’s what speed do,” although even he couldn’t quite match Gore. In his first Major League game, Gore stole a base and scored a walk-off run. “I wouldn’t say I’m cocky, but I know I’m really fast,” he previously said in an interview with the Kansas City Star in 2014. And to grab me, it will require a flawless throw.
Terrance Gore developed into a more complete player during his second tenure with the Royals. With 14 hits in 58 at-bats and 13 base steals in 18 attempts, he batted.275 in 2019.
He played for the Dodgers, Braves, and Mets in subsequent years, earning Atlanta another opportunity to excel in the postseason in the 2021 NLDS. Even so, when the Braves won the World Series, he demonstrated his immense heart.
Gore took out his phone and made a video call to pitcher Charlie Morton, who had fractured his leg in Game 1 and was recuperating at home following surgery, as Atlanta celebrated their victory against the Houston Astros in Game 6. All Gore wanted was for Charlie to join in the festivities.
And nevertheless, a celebration, no matter how improbable, seemed to follow Gore wherever he went. Even though Gore didn’t record a run batted in or hit a Major League home run before retiring, his influence on the game will live on forever.