The righty can strike batters out.
The Boston Red Sox aren’t going all out for the holidays, but they’ve remained active.
Pitching is a critical component of the Red Sox’s success in 2025, and they have made both significant and minor moves to get it. Following the huge Garrett Crochet deal, those moves have skewed toward the tiny side, although one never knows how each signing will play out.
On Sunday, Ari Alexander of KPRC 2 Houston reported that the Red Sox have signed right-hander Austin Adams to a minor-league contract with an invitation to Spring Training. The contract reportedly includes appearance bonuses for up to $1.5 million.
Adams, 33, has pitched for five major league teams, most recently the Oakland Athletics, over eight seasons. The righty has a 4.10 career ERA in 188 outings. He has a feisty personality on the mound and went semi-viral this year for ridiculing the New York Mets’ iconic “OMG” celebration.
In 2024, Adams had a 3.92 ERA in 56 appearances, striking out 55 batters in 41 1/3 innings (11.5 K/9). He’s been prone to free passes his entire career, and this year was no exception, as he walked 23 batters and struck out 13.
Adams depends significantly on his slider, throwing it more than 72% of the time by 2024. According to Baseball Savant, it has an average horizontal break of 9.3 inches, which is 4.2 inches greater than the major league average. It had a 39.2% whiff rate this season and an anticipated batting average of.199.
If the Red Sox can harness Adams’ natural talent and improve his control, he might be a valuable addition to the bullpen at some point this season. He’ll need to work for everything he gets.
