Kolarek was born in Baltimore,Maryland,to Frank Kolarek and Dorothy Kolarek.[1] His father played baseball as a catcher at the University of Maryland from 1973-75,and then played professionally in the minor leagues for the Oakland Athletics organization from 1976-1979,reaching Class AA with the Ogden A's.[1] He has three sisters.[1][2]
He attended Catonsville High School.[3] He was a pitcher and outfielder for the Comets.[1] In 2006 as a junior he was named First-Team All-Metro as an outfielder.[1] In 2007 as a senior he batted .397 and was 8-2 with a 1.05 ERA as a pitcher,and was named First-Team All-Metro as a pitcher and a Brooks Robinson All Star.[1]
He then attended the University of Maryland,where he played from 2008 to 2010. In 2008 as a freshman,he was 2–1 with a 4.26 ERA in 21 relief appearances.[1] In 2009 as a sophomore,he was 2–1 with a 4.68 ERA in 26 games (four starts),and in 2010 as a junior,he was 1–4 with a 6.06 ERA in 13 games (five starts).[4] Ranked as one of the top 50 lefthanders in the country,[5] Kolarek was drafted by the Mets in the 11th round of the 2010 Major League Baseball draft.[6][7]
Professional career
New York Mets
Kolarek pitched for the Kingsport Mets and Brooklyn Cyclones in 2010,and went 2–1 with a 3.13 ERA in 22 relief appearances between them. In 37 1/3 innings,he allowed 19 hits and had 45 strikeouts. Had he qualified,he would have led Kingsport in WHIP,with a mark of 0.643.[8]
He pitched for the Savannah Sand Gnats and St. Lucie Mets in 2011,going 7–1 with a 2.85 ERA in 26 games (one start). His 1.000 winning percentage for Savannah tied for the team and league lead.[8]
In 2012,Kolarek went 1–3 with 18 saves (fifth in the league),70 strikeouts (11.1 strikeouts per 9 innings;6th in the league),and a 2.37 ERA in 44 games (57 innings) for St. Lucie,earning a spot on the Florida State League All-Star team.[9] He also pitched 6 games for the Binghamton Mets,and posted a 2–0 record with a 5.68 ERA. He was an MiLB.com Organization All-Star and a FSL Post-Season All-Star that year.[10] He led St. Lucie in games and games finished that year. He led the entire league in saves. In the Arizona Fall League,he had a 2.92 ERA in nine games for the Surprise Saguaros.[8]
In 2013,he was 3–3 with a 1.71 ERA in 44 relief appearances for Binghamton. In his first taste of Triple-A,Kolarek had an 11.25 ERA in 2 appearances for the Las Vegas 51s as well.[8]
Kolarek spent some time with the big league club during 2014 spring training. Back with Binghamton for that year's regular season,his ERA was 6.07 in 48 relief appearances,though he had a 1.12 mark in six games for the Gigantes de Carolina in the Puerto Rican Winter League.
He spent 2015 with Binghamton.[11] He tied for fourth in the Eastern League with 51 appearances.[12] He then pitched for the Gigantes de Carolina in the Puerto Rican League for a second consecutive year.[12]
Tampa Bay Rays
On October 23,2015,Kolarek signed a minor league contract with the Baltimore Orioles organization and was assigned to the Double-A Bowie Baysox.[13]
On December 10,2015,the Tampa Bay Rays selected Kolarek in the minor league phase of the Rule 5 draft.[14] He split the 2016 season between the Triple-A Durham Bulls and the Double-A Montgomery Biscuits,posting a 3-4 record and 3.13 ERA in 47 appearances between the two teams,holding left-handers to limited lefties to a .143 average.[12] Kolarek elected free agency following the season on November 7,2016.[15]
Atlanta Braves
On November 19,2016,Kolarek signed a minor league contract with the Atlanta Braves organization that included an invitation to Spring Training. He did not make the team out of spring and was released on March 24,2017.[16]
Tampa Bay Rays (second stint)
Adam Kolarek pitching against the Baltimore Orioles on July 1,2017.
On March 27,2017,Kolarek signed a minor league contract to return to the Tampa Bay Rays organization. He was assigned to Triple-A Durham to begin the year. Kolarek was called up to the majors for the first time on June 28,2017.[17] At 28 years old,after 320 minor league games over eight minor league seasons,Kolarek made his major league debut at PNC Park,throwing 1.1 innings,allowing one hit and striking out one on 14 pitches.[12][18] On September 3,Kolarek was designated for assignment by Tampa Bay after struggling to a 6.48 ERA across 12 appearances in his rookie year.[19] He was outrighted to Durham the next day.
Kolarek did not make the team out of spring in 2018,and was assigned to Triple-A Durham to start the season. On July 6,2018,Kolarek was selected to the active roster after posting a 1.70 ERA in 29 games in Durham.[20] In 2018,he made 31 appearances with two saves and a 3.93 ERA,and 10.5 strikeouts per 9 innings.[21] In 2019 with the Rays,he was 4–2 with a 3.95 ERA in 54 games.[21]
Los Angeles Dodgers
On July 31,2019,the Rays traded Kolarek to the Los Angeles Dodgers in exchange for minor leaguer Niko Hulsizer.[22] He pitched in 26 games for the Dodgers in 2019,with two wins and a stellar 0.77 ERA in 112⁄3 innings.[21] In 2019 he allowed only 19.6% of inherited runners to score (the seventh-best percentage among Major League relievers), and had the 3rd-highest ground ball percentage among big league relievers, at 66.9%.[12]
In the pandemic-shortened 2020 season, Kolarek was 3–0 with one save. He appeared in 20 games and allowed only two runs in 19 innings for an amazing 0.95 ERA.[21] He held batters to a batting line of .164/.208/.224.[12] He appeared in four games in the postseason, working 3+1⁄3 innings, allowing three runs as the Dodgers won the 2020 World Series.[21] With the victory, Kolarek earned his first ever World Series championship.[9]
Oakland Athletics
On February 12, 2021, Kolarek was traded to the Oakland Athletics (along with Cody Thomas) in return for Sheldon Neuse and Gus Varland.[23] Kolarek made 12 appearances for Oakland in 2021, but struggled to an 8.00 ERA with 4 strikeouts in 9.0 innings pitched.
In 2022, Kolarek pitched in 15 games for the Athletics, logging a 4.58 ERA with 9 strikeouts in 17.2 innings of work. He was designated for assignment by Oakland on June 30, 2022. On July 1, Kolarek cleared waivers and was sent outright to the Triple-A Las Vegas Aviators.[24] On October 13, Kolarek elected free agency.
In his major league career through 2022, he kept left-handed batters to a batting line of .190/.243/.260.[25] Between 2017 and 2022, he primarily threw an 89 mph sinker and a 79 mph slider, while also throwing an 83 mph changeup and a 92 mph fourseam fastball.[26]
Los Angeles Dodgers (second stint)
On December 15, 2022, Kolarek signed a minor league contract with the Los Angeles Dodgers organization.[27] He was assigned to the Triple–A Oklahoma City Dodgers to begin the 2023 season, where he pitched in 21 games and posted a 2.18 ERA with 12 strikeouts in 20+2⁄3 innings of work.[8] On June 11, Kolarek was selected to the major league roster.[28] He tossed a scoreless 1+1⁄3 innings of relief against the Philadelphia Phillies, striking out two. On June 14, he was designated for assignment.[29] He cleared waivers and was sent outright to Triple–A Oklahoma City on June 17.[30]
New York Mets (second stint)
On August 1, 2023, Kolarek and Phil Bickford were traded to the New York Mets in exchange for cash considerations.[31] After 6 appearances for the Triple–A Syracuse Mets, his contract was selected to the major league roster on August 19.[32] In 4 appearances for the Mets, he tossed 4+2⁄3 scoreless innings of relief with five strikeouts. On August 27, Kolarek was designated for assignment by the Mets.[33] On August 30, Kolarek cleared waivers and elected free agency in lieu of an outright assignment.[34]
Atlanta Braves (second stint)
On August 31, 2023, Kolarek signed a minor league contract with the Atlanta Braves organization.[35] In 7 games for the Triple–A Gwinnett Stripers, he struggled to a 9.82 ERA with 7 strikeouts across 7+1⁄3 innings of work. Kolarek elected free agency following the season on November 6.[36]
Los Angeles Angels
On November 26, 2023, Kolarek signed a one-year, $900,000 contract with the Los Angeles Angels.[37] On January 6, 2024, he was removed from the 40-man roster and sent outright to the Triple–A Salt Lake Bees.[38] In 31 games for the Bees, Kolarek struggled to a 6.97 ERA with 33 strikeouts across 31 innings pitched. He was released by the Angels organization on August 13.[39]
His father, Frank Kolarek, played in the minor leagues in the 1970s and 1980s. Adam married Melanie Rae Shapiro on November 11, 2017.[46][47]
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