Back with the Braves

Matt Adams is making a return visit in his trip around the National League. The power hitting 1st baseman/outfielder hit 20 homers but batted just .226 (with a .276 OBP) in a part time role for the Nationals last season -- who didn't mind letting him leave as free agent.

Those less than impressive stats, combined with career-long defensive issues, saw Adams go unsigned most of the winter before landing a minor league deal with the Mets. I caught him in the March 11th game at Port St. Lucie. But with Rookie of the Year Pete Alonso now a fixture at 1st, Dominic Smith, a more than capable backup, both Robinson Cano and JD Davis able to fill in there for a few days, and Yoenis Cespedes expected to be the primary DH, Adams didn't stand much of a chance to make it to Flushing.

Opting out of that deal, he officially signed Monday with the Braves. But, even after passing on Yasiel Puig after he tested positive for the virus, that club doesn't offer much of a path to everyday work, either. Four-time All Star Freddie Freeman, healthy again after battling Covid 19, mans 1st base, with the outfield and DH slots filled by free agent prize Marcell Ozuna, Ronald Acuna Jr., Austin Riley and Ender Inciarte.

So, after two tenures with the Cardinals, time in Atlanta and Washington and a brief audition with the Mets, it's back to Truist Park for Adams, who played for the Braves from May 2017 through August '18. 

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