Adam Bass

Adam Randle Bass

• Bats Right, Throws Right
• Height 6' 6", Weight 210 lb.

• School University of Alabama in Huntsville
• High School Madison (AL) Academy

• Born July 31, 1981 in Kokomo, IN USA

BR minors page

Biographical information

Adam Bass played five years in the minor leagues before joining the Rakuten Golden Eagles in Japan.

Bass went 29-7 with two saves, a 3.57 ERA and 245 strikeouts in 282 innings for the University of Alabama in Huntsville, a strong NCAA Division II team. He set school records for wins, innings, starts and strikeouts. He also pitched for the 2002 Harwich Mariners of the Cape Cod Baseball League, with a 4.26 ERA and one save in four games. The Arizona Diamondbacks took him in the 10th round of the 2003 amateur draft.

He debuted with the Yakima Bears and dazzled, with a 0.80 ERA. In 33 2/3 innings over 27 appearances, he struck out 34 and saved three games. He allowed a .209 average and had no decisions. Baseball America did not rank him among the top twenty prospects in the Northwest League.

Bass jumped to high class A for 2004, in one of the most hitter-friendly parks in baseball. He went 10-8 with a 5.03 ERA and .304 opponent batting average for the Lancaster JetHawks.

In 2005, Bass fell to 5-10 while his ERA improved to 3.99 in his AA debut for the Tennessee Smokies. He split 2006 between Tennessee (2-3, 4.50 in 9 games) and the AAA Tucson Sidewinders (9-4, 4.76 for the Pacific Coast League titlists).

Bass began 2007 with Tucson and went 3-1 with a 2.16 ERA in 19 games, mostly in relief. The Rakuten Golden Eagles became interested and signed him for 30 million yen (around $250,000) and a 20 million yen signing bonus (around $160,000). Bass debuted for Rakuten on July 18 and struck out 6 and allowed 6, giving up two runs in 4 1/3 innings in a no-decision. He was 0-2 with a 7.63 ERA in 5 games for Rakuten, allowing 30 hits in 15 1/3 IP. Returning to the US in 2008, his struggles continued for the Portland Beavers (2-2, Sv, 8.06 ERA) to end his career.