Tim Adleman Beat the Odds to Make it to the Major Leagues

[OFFNY]

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About 6 years ago, I met a guy who was drafted by the Devil Rays in the lower rounds of the MLB draft pick about 5 years prior to our conversation.

He explained to me generally how things work for players that are drafted in the higher rounds, as compared to those drafted in the lower rounds.

He said that for players drafted in the top 10-15 rounds, the organization will generally stick with you for at least 4 or 5 years as long as you are playing decent. The reason being is that (especially for the top 5 or 6 rounds) they spent a chunk of money drafting and signing you, and that they would rather be safe than sorry in terms of giving up on you too early.

For players like himself (drafted in the 25th round, the 30th, round, the 35th round, etc.), they usually give you two years to show what you have. FOR THOSE players, being pretty good is not enough. You have to really catch their eye for them to continue to stick with you beyond 2 years.

At that point, if the team that drafted you does not offer you a contract for a 3rd season, you pretty much have 2 choices ...... quit baseball, or sign to play for a team in the Independent Leagues for a couple of years, and see if by some chance you can then catch the eye of some scouts of Major League teams. This is precisely what this fellow that I had a conversation did. However, in the Independent Leagues, he was again pretty good (but not great), and so he finally gave up baseball, and decided to go back to school to become a doctor (he had already had his Bachelor's Degree when the Devil Rays drafted him.)

This all brings me to a pitcher that I noticed happened to be starting tomorrow's game for the Cincinnati Reds, against the Cardinals. Tim Adleman (like the fellow that I had a conversation with a few years ago) played college baseball for 4 years, and also like him, he was NOT drafted in the upper rounds (he was drafted in the 24th round of the 2010 draft, by the Baltimore Orioles.) And like the fellow that I referenced, he too was OK but no great shakes in his 2 years in the Orioles' farm system at Aberdeen and Delmarva. And also like him, he was released by the team that drafted him (the Orioles), and signed on to play with a team in the Independent Leagues for a couple of years.

That is where their stories differ. Adleman DID somehow catch the eye of a MLB team while he was playing in the Independent Leagues for those 2 years, and in October of 2013, he was offered him a Minor League contract by the Cincinnati Reds. They placed him in their Advanced-A affiliate the following season (2014), and soon after he was promoted to their AA-affiliate. With the AA team, he had a 2.85 ERA and a 1.139 WHIP in 79 innings pitched. In 2015, he had another solid season for the Reds' AA-affiliate, pitching to the tune of a 2.64 ERA and a 1.220 WHIP in 26 games started. The next year (2016), he was promoted to the Reds' AAA-affiliate, where his numbers improved even more (a 2.38 ERA, and a 1.094 WHIP.) And then, he finally got the call to the Major Leagues, when the Reds called him up on May 1st.

Tim Adleman's Major League numbers in his rookie season have been pretty good so far (a 4.06 ERA and a 1.249 WHIP in 11 games started) ........ he may or may not have a very long Major League career ........ but he has certainly bucked the odds just by reaching the Major Leagues at all, considering that he was only a 24th-round draft choice as a 22 year-old player out of college, and considering that the team that drafted him (the Baltimore Orioles) gave up on him after he had 2 mediocre seasons in the lower levels of their Minor League system.

Thank you all for letting me share ........ much appreciated.