Popular Former Rays Shortstop Willy Adames Adjusting to New Home in San Francisco
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SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. — Willy Adames had a big smile on his face as the sun shined down on him at Oracle Park on Friday afternoon. One was a familiar sight for the first-year San Francisco Giants shortstop who was a huge fan favorite in Tampa bay, and one was not.
The smile? It's always there, and it's why so many people in and out of the game love being around him so much. He spent seven years in the Rays organization from 2014 to 2021, and five in the big leagues with Tampa Bay.
The sunshine? Not so much. Adames signed a huge seven-year, $182 million contract with the Giants last December — the biggest ever given by a franchise that has 55 all-time Hall of Fame players — and he's still getting used to his new team and his new surroundings. He's hitting just .223 this season, but he does have 18 home runs and 61 RBIs, heading into Friday's game.
“It’s been a little challenging the first year here, getting to know everybody in the organization, and obviously getting adjusted to this park and the weather,'' Adames said prior to Friday night's game between the 59-63 Rays and 59-62 Giants. "It’s way different from what I’m used to. I tell people, I’ve never played outside my whole career. I was inside at Tropicana (Field in St. Petersburg) and at Milwaukee (as his primary ballpark).
"It’s been good here. It’s a good team and there are a lot of good guys here. It hasn’t been the best year for us, but we’re going to get better.’’
Adames has been a part of two fairly high-profile trades, both coming and going from Tampa Bay. An original Detroit Tiger as an international signee from the Dominican Republic, he came to the Rays in the 2014 trade that sent pitcher David Price to Detroit. He played 332 regular season games for the Rays, and was the starting shortstop on the 2020 team that won the American League pennant and lost the World Series in six games to the Los Angeles Dodgers.
Involved in two big Rays trades
He was traded to the Milwaukee Brewers on May 21, 2021, with current ace Drew Rasmussen coming from Milwaukee along with reliever J.P. Feiereisen. Rays manager Kevin Cash remembers the day Adames was traded, because they were in Dunedin at the time, playing the first game of a series with the Toronto Blue Jays, who were playing home games there because of travel restrictons due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Even though Adames said it feels ''like a long time'' since he played for the Rays, manager Kevin Cash has great memories of his shortstop.
“It’s been a while. I’ll never forget the day in Dunedin sitting there when all that went down,'' Cash said of the day Adames was traded. "There were a lot of tears and a lot of sadness just for what he meant to our club and just everybody that he impacted.
“I’m happy this offseason that he went out and got the deal he deserves.’’
This moment between Yandy and Willy 🥹 pic.twitter.com/dn8MhdJ3PV
— Rays The Roof (@RaysTheRoofTB) August 16, 2025
Adames spent a long time before the game talking with Rays players and staffers. He was teammates with Brandon Lowe, Yandy Diaz and Pete Fairbanks with the Rays, and he talked with fellow Dominican Junior Caminero.
“Apparently they still have some love for me, and it’s the same here. I have a lot of love for them, too. It’s always good to see their faces,'' Adames said. "Obviously, that’s something that makes you feel good when people say good things about you.
“When you haven’t been around (the Rays) in a long time, and they still they remember you as a positive guy and a good guy, for me, that’s what I want to leave behind when I’m not here. It makes me feel good, especially since it's been a long time. I'm getting old. I’m going to be 30 in a few weeks (on Sept. 2).''
Adames had a big early impact on Friday night's game. He walked, stole second and scored on a Dominic Smith single in the first inning, then hit a solo home run off Joe Boyle in the third to give the Giants a 4-3 lead, chasing Boyle from the game after just six outs and 50 pitches.
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Tom Brew is the publisher of ''Tampa Bay Rays on SI'' and has been with the Sports Illustrated platform since 2019. He has worked at some of America's finest newspapers, including the Tampa Bay Times, Indianapolis Star and South Florida Sun-Sentinel. He owns eight sites on the "On SI'' network and has written four books.
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