Lane Adams

Career

The Kansas City Royals drafted Lane Adams in the 13th round of the 2009 MLB draft, and he signed for a $225,000 bonus instead of attending Missouri State University on a basketball scholarship. In 2012, he was named a Midwest League Mid-Season All Star. The following year, playing for the Northwest Arkansas Naturals of the Class AA Texas League, Adams earned a MiLB Royals Organization All Star nod and shared the Royals’ co-Minor League Player of the Year award with pitcher Yordano Ventura.

After the 2013 season, the Royals added him to their 40-man roster. In 2014, still with the Naturals, Adams batted .269/.352/.427 over 524 at bats. He scored 65 runs (tied for 6th in the league), hit 25 doubles (tied for 5th), stole 38 bases (3rd) while being caught six times, and was hit by nine pitches (tied for 6th). He was a Mid-Season and Post-Season Texas League All Star.

On September 1, 2014, the Royals promoted him to the majors, and he made his debut that night as a pinch runner for Raúl Ibañez in the eighth inning against the Texas Rangers. In 2015, again with the Naturals, Adams hit .298/.360/.466 with 29 stolen bases (tied for 4th in the league) and was caught six times in 373 at bats. The Royals released him in November 2015. The New York Yankees claimed him off waivers, and in 2016 with the Trenton Thunder he batted .253/.343/.363 with 31 steals in 36 attempts over 289 at bats.

Chicago Cubs

The Yankees released him on July 28, 2016, and he contemplated retiring at age 26. On August 3, 2016, Adams signed a minor league contract with the Chicago Cubs. With the Tennessee Smokies, he hit .325/.378/.506 with nine stolen bases without being caught in 83 at bats. He elected free agency on November 7.

Atlanta Braves

On December 13, 2016, he signed a minor league deal with the Atlanta Braves. Braves manager Brian Snitker said, “I didn’t know who he was. I’d never heard of him.” In 2017 with the Gwinnett Stripers, Adams batted .264/.320/.461 with 15 stolen bases in 18 attempts over 178 at bats. The Braves promoted him to the majors on April 25, 2017.

Four days later, he recorded his first major league hit against the Milwaukee Brewers. On June 22, he hit his first major league home run, a three-run shot, against the San Francisco Giants. On September 10, Adams hit a two-run, walk-off home run in the 11th inning against the Miami Marlins, a blast that clinched the NL East for the Washington Nationals. For the 2017 season with the Braves, he batted .275/.339/.468 and was successful in all 10 of his stolen base attempts in 109 at bats.

On April 19, 2018, the Braves designated Adams for assignment. He refused an assignment to the Gwinnett Stripers and elected free agency on April 27. On May 5, 2018, he signed a minor league deal with the Chicago Cubs, hitting .325 in 22 games for the Double-A Tennessee Smokies and .231 in seven games for the Triple-A Iowa Cubs. The Cubs released him on June 30.

Atlanta Braves (second stint)

On July 16, 2018, Adams signed a minor league deal with the Atlanta Braves and was called up on September 1. With the Braves in 2018, he batted .240/.345/.520 with one steal in 25 at bats. The Braves outrighted him on October 31, and he elected free agency on November 2. Through 2018, Adams had a major league career batting line of .263/.333/.467 with 11 stolen bases without being caught in 137 at bats.

Philadelphia Phillies

In the minors, he hit .264/.338/.403 with 235 steals while being caught 44 times in 3,718 at bats. On January 14, 2019, he signed a minor league contract with the Philadelphia Phillies. With the Triple-A Lehigh Valley IronPigs, he batted .255/.340/.465 with 12 home runs and 29 RBIs in 271 at bats, stealing eight bases in ten attempts. The Phillies released him on July 1, 2019.

On July 31, 2019, Adams signed a minor league deal with the Atlanta Braves. In 18 games for the Double-A Mississippi Braves, he went 3-for-39 (.077) with three RBI and two stolen bases. He elected free agency on November 4. On February 17, 2020, he signed a minor league deal with the Minnesota Twins but did not play in a game due to the cancellation of the minor league season because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

He became a free agent on November 2. On May 20, 2021, Adams signed with the Acereros de Monclova of the Mexican League, hitting .263/.324/.326 with 11 RBI in 26 games before being released on June 21. On June 24, 2021, he signed with the Tigres de Quintana Roo of the Mexican League, going 2-for-25 (.080) with no home runs and one RBI in nine games. Adams retired from professional baseball after the season and became a private hitting instructor.

Did You Know?

• Adams scored 3,251 points as a guard for Red Oak High School's basketball team, making him the fifth-highest scorer in Oklahoma high school basketball history.
• His 93.7% free throw percentage as a junior led all of Oklahoma.