Jacksonville Professional Athletes

Jacksonville Alumni Report: MLB, Week of Sept. 20–26

Mason Adams gave Colorado fans something to feel good about — even if the scoreboard didn't cooperate.

The Jacksonville alum delivered one of his sharpest outings of the season Thursday against Arizona, going six innings and racking up eight strikeouts in a 5-3 Rockies loss. Adams held his own against a Diamondbacks lineup that feasted on Colorado pitching elsewhere — Arizona finished with 13 hits on the night compared to just three for the Rockies. His ERA settled at 4.03, a respectable figure for a pitcher on one of the most beleaguered rosters in the league.

The timing, though, was painful. The defeat handed Colorado its 100th loss of the season — the franchise's fourth consecutive 100-loss campaign — making Adams's gem feel like a diamond buried in rubble. For a team that struggled to generate any meaningful offense or defense around him, his six-inning, eight-punchout effort was exactly the kind of performance that gets noticed precisely because everything else fell apart.

Still, Adams continues to be one of the few genuine reasons to tune in to a Rockies broadcast. For Jacksonville faithful tracking alumni in the big leagues, he's quietly building a legitimate MLB résumé despite the team context.

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Across the country, Austin Hays has been a steadier presence in the Padres outfield down the stretch. The left fielder logged hits in back-to-back games Friday and Saturday against the Dodgers, including an RBI knock in Friday's 4-2 San Diego win. Hays finished the week hitting .271 — a figure that dipped and recovered over the four-game stretch against Los Angeles — as San Diego pushed through the final days of its season schedule.

Hays has had the benefit of playing for a contending organization, a far cry from the situation Adams finds himself in, but both Jacksonville products are earning their keep at the highest level of the game.

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The rest of the Dolphins' MLB contingent — Mike Baumann (Marlins), Michael Darrell-Hicks (Pirates), Justin Lawrence (Nationals), and Tyler Santana (Cubs) — didn't surface prominently in this week's action. Given the late-September calendar, roster management and service time decisions may be limiting appearances for relievers and depth arms across the board.

The headline out of Jacksonville's pro pipeline this week belongs to Adams. Pitching through a lost season with a team chasing historic futility, he delivered a performance that would stand out on any roster. That it came on the night Colorado clinched its fourth straight century of losses says everything about the franchise's situation — and nothing about the quality of the Jacksonville product on the mound.

Mason Adams, Jacksonville's Quiet Contender

In a Colorado season that has largely been a footnote — the Rockies sitting at 55-90 — rookie right-hander Mason Adams is writing one of the few stories worth reading. The Jacksonville alumnus has quietly assembled a case for a permanent spot in the 2027 rotation, and the numbers are backing up the noise.

Adams posted a 3.38 ERA across his most recent starts, including a sharp Friday outing against the Detroit Tigers at Comerica Park: five innings, five strikeouts, and just one earned run. That kind of line earns headlines anywhere, but it's especially striking in a Rockies uniform. The only damage done in that game came after Adams left — Colorado's bullpen surrendered five runs in the sixth inning to hand the club a 6-2 loss, a result that had nothing to do with the rookie's effort.

His previous start told a similar story. On September 6 against St. Louis, Adams went 4.2 innings and punched out seven Cardinals — a strikeout total that signals genuine swing-and-miss stuff. Three earned runs came across in that one, nudging his ERA to 3.95 before the Tigers game brought it back down to 3.38. For context, that's the kind of ERA that would be respectable on a contender. On a 55-win team in the thin air of Colorado, it's genuinely impressive.

Sports Illustrated has already connected the dots: Adams has done enough in 2026 to merit serious consideration for Colorado's 2027 roster. The Rockies' rebuild has been a long and painful process, but a young starter who can eat innings, miss bats, and limit damage is exactly the kind of piece that makes a front office lean forward. Adams, who entered the year without an established MLB role, is rapidly changing that calculus.

The matchup data reinforces the trajectory. The September 11 game thread listed him at a 3.95 ERA before the start — meaning he actually lowered his ERA with five innings of one-run ball against a Tigers lineup that was 67-79 but still capable of making life difficult for young pitchers. Adams left that game with his stock rising.

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Hays Heats Up in San Diego

The other Jacksonville name to track this week was Austin Hays, who had a productive stretch for the Padres. Hays went 2-for-something with two runs scored in San Diego's 7-6 win over the Giants on September 12, pushing his average to .256. He also contributed two hits and a run scored in the Padres' September 9 game against the Nationals, along with an RBI that helped San Diego to a 5-4 win.

Hays has been a reliable presence in San Diego's outfield down the stretch, and his bat showing signs of life late in the season gives the Padres something to weigh as they evaluate their roster heading into the offseason.

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Jacksonville's MLB footprint this week was defined by Adams' emergence and Hays' quiet consistency — two very different stories from two very different places in their careers. Adams is the one with momentum, and Colorado fans would be wise to pay attention.

Mason Adams Holds His Own Against Atlanta

Jacksonville's Mason Adams gave Colorado Rockies fans a reason to pay attention in late August, turning in a composed second career start against one of the National League's most dangerous lineups. Facing the Atlanta Braves on August 30, Adams went five innings, surrendered just two earned runs, struck out five, and posted a 3.00 ERA — the kind of debut stretch that earns a young pitcher more opportunities.

Context matters here: the Braves entered the game chasing a sweep, and Adams was tasked with stopping the bleeding. That he lasted five frames and kept Atlanta's offense manageable is a legitimate data point, not just a talking point. For a Rockies organization that rarely develops pitching, a Jacksonville product holding down a rotation spot is worth tracking.

Adams is listed among active MLB alumni also connected to the White Sox organization, but it's his work on the mound for Colorado that's drawing attention this week.

Austin Hays Keeps Hitting in San Diego

While Adams was eating innings in Atlanta, outfielder Austin Hays was quietly contributing at the plate for the San Diego Padres. Hays collected hits in multiple appearances during the September 1–5 window — going 1-for-his-outings against the Reds on September 2 (with a run scored) and adding another hit against the Yankees on September 5.

His batting average fluctuated between .215 and .227 across the stretch, reflecting the feast-or-famine nature of the late-season grind. Still, Hays is in the lineup and producing in a pennant-race environment, which is the kind of late-career resurgence that Jacksonville alumni can appreciate.

The Bigger Picture

Two Jacksonville alumni on active MLB rosters in September, each with something to prove — it's a modest but meaningful showing for a program not typically associated with producing major-league depth. Adams is building a résumé one start at a time; Hays is trying to finish a season on an upswing. Neither story is finished, but both are worth watching as the 2026 regular season winds down.