BBD Exclusive Interview with David Adams

Bronx Baseball Daily

Jul 9, 2010

Earlier this afternoon it appeared that the Yankees had a done deal with the Mariners for ace pitcher Cliff Lee, for catcher Jesus Montero, and second baseman David Adams. That deal ultimately didn’t happen because the Mariners expressed concern about Adams’ sprained ankle.

Before today nobody really knew much about Adams or the ankle so I contacted him this afternoon (I’ve actually interviewed him quite a few times when he was with the Staten Island Yankees) to get the low-down on his condition:

Bronx Baseball Daily: So a lot of people are finding out who David Adams is today. How’s the day going for you?

TOP NEWS

David Adams: I’m not exactly sure what’s going on. I don’t really pay attention to that kind of stuff, but I guess people have been saying that I was almost traded.

BBD: What have you heard?

Adams: I haven’t heard anything. I’ve been getting text messages all day from friends and family and that’s kind of how I’ve been hearing stuff.

BBD: How do you feel about being involved in trade talks?

Adams: It is what it is. I can’t control that kind of stuff. Right now I’m just worried about getting healthy and that’s the bottom line.

BBD: How’s the ankle?

Adams: It feels great, it’s coming along and getting better. It’s not really as good as we’d hoped it would be by now, but that’s the way it goes sometimes.

BBD: What happened exactly:

Adams: It happened about 7-8 weeks ago. I was sliding into second trying to break up a double play and I kind of just jammed it while sliding in.

BBD: Being a second baseman in the Yankees organization you have Robinson Cano blocking you pretty well. Is there a part of you that wouldn’t mind getting traded?

Adams: I really don’t have an opinion on that. It is what it is. All I can control is what I do on the field and the bottom line is that’s what I’m worried about.

BBD: Do you think you’ll get back on the field this season?

Adams: That’s the plan. I’m focused on getting back on the field as soon as I can. Hopefully that happens before the season is over.

BBD: Thanks a lot for taking time out of your day to speak with me.

Adams: No problem.

After talking with Adams and giving this situation some thought, I can see why the Mariners hesitated pulling the trigger on this deal. It’s only an ankle sprain and from what it sounds like he should eventually make a full recovery.

The problem is that this is typically a relatively mild injury that only takes a few weeks to come back from, but so far he’s already missed about eight weeks and the talk is that he might not play at all this season.

It isn’t a huge risk, but it’s hard to blame the Mariners for wanting another prospect. They haven’t seen MRI’s of his ankle, for all they know he’s going to need surgery that will not only knock him out for the remainder of this season, but keep him from playing winter ball as well.

That’s a lot of developmental time lost for a young player and ultimately it could mean the difference between him being a regular contributor or a utility infielder. That could be the thinking the Yankees have in trying to include him in this deal.

He’s a good enough prospect at this point that this injury could mean nothing. The possibility that it is something more major is always there though. If you are the Mariners dealing Cliff Lee, you can’t take that chance.