Meet the 2019 Yankees: Chance Adams

One of my favorite Yankees prospects coming through the system was and is Chance Adams. Adams was drafted as a relief pitcher and was converted to the starting role down in the Minor Leagues with varying degrees of success. Chance took off as a starter but fell on hard times at the end of the 2017 season and throughout the 2018 campaign as well. I, personally, am not ready to give up on such a promising arm and I fully expect him to bounce back here in 2019 as a starter for the Yankees. Let’s meet him, Mr. Chance Adams.

Chance Adams, 24-years old, is a right-handed starting pitcher out of the New York Yankees organization. Adams’s repertoire consists of a 93 MPH four-same fastball, a 79 MPH curveball, an 85 MPH slider, and a rarely thrown 85 MPH changeup. Adams’ fastball is considered to be average, with little movement, and is used as a pitch-to-contact pitch rather than to strike out opposing batters. Adams uses his slider to generate groundballs to get the majority of his outs. Adams is 6’1” and weighs in at 220 lbs., unless of course he is sporting that impressive beard that he was seen with during the offseason. That has to add a pound or two, you would think.

Chance Adams, no middle name like myself, was born on August 10, 1994 in Scottsdale, Arizona where he attended Chaparral High School. Adams played college baseball at Yavapai College for two years before transferring to Dallas Baptist University. After one year there, the New York Yankees drafted the right-hander in the fifth round of the 2015 MLB First Year Players Draft. Adams made his professional debut with the Staten Island Yankees and finished his first professional season with the High-A Tampa Yankees.

Adams was converted into a starting pitcher beginning in 2016 and saw immediate results from the conversion. Adams started the 2016 season with a 5-0 record with a 2.65 ERA in 12 games before being promoted to Double-A with the Trenton Thunder. Adams finished the season in Trenton with an 8-1 record and a 2.07 ERA. Adams continued to destroy AA pitching in 2017 and quickly earned a promotion to Triple-A before finishing the season with a combined 15-5 record and a 2.45 ERA in 150.1 innings pitched.

Adams would struggle for a lot of the 2018 season, but he was called up to make his MLB debut against the Boston Red Sox inside Fenway Park on August 4. Now, Adams will look to build on the positives from last season and move forward in his path back towards the big-league level. I’m not ready to give up on you Chance, and I’m sure there’s plenty of fans backing you that feel the exact same way as I do. Good luck to you this season and I look forward to seeing you back in the Bronx at some point here in 2019.