There’s that old baseball saying about a swing and a miss. One has to wonder if that phrase hasn’t gone through Oxford native Ty Adcock’s mind once or twice. Adcock is about to begin his fourth year in the Seattle Mariners organization and hopes this year sees him transition from the minors to the parent organization. It’s been a tough road for Adcock so far.
After graduating from South Granville High School, Adcock spent four years playing for Elon College. He started as a catcher but by his junior year was pitching and his college coaches saw that he had what it took to go further pitching and promoted him to closer in his senior season. He soon caught the attention of Major League Baseball scouts and was drafted by the Mariners.
Things were looking good for Adcock but injuries and Covid has played a factor in his career. “I was hurt in my freshman year at Elon. I had a back injury,” Adcock explained. He had fractured his L5 vertebra and then in his senior year shoulder issues appeared. The Mariners felt it best to have him rehab all of 2019 so he didn’t throw at all. In 2020 Covid came along and wiped out the entire season.
In 2021 baseball returned and so did Adcock, but not for long. “I was facing my 6th batter of the preseason when I tore my UCL ligament in my elbow,” Adcock said. This meant that Adcock would have to undergo Tommy John Surgery. After 17 months of rehab, Adcock is ready to get back to work. He spent the autumn playing in the Arizona Fall League and is ready to start spring training in February. “I’m 25 and that’s not old but, in baseball I know the clock is ticking,” Adcock stated. “I’ve got to make some big strides in 2023. I have to make a name for myself. I’ve really got to show the organization what I’ve got,” Adcock added.
Perhaps, with a little luck, the phrase a swing and a miss will be applied to the batters that Adcock is facing instead of himself.