Adams grates at trade rumors

Davante Adams said on his weekly spot on the “Up and Adams Show” that he hadn’t heard from Las Vegas coach Antonio Pierce since a screenshot appeared of him appearing to like a social media post about possibly trading the Raiders star wide receiver. Sports Illustrated writer Michael Fabiano posted on Instagram: “Don’t be surprised if Davante Adams has already played his last snap with the Raiders.” “I keep my head down and keep doing my thing and let the chips fall where they may as it pertains to that,” Davante Adams (above) told host Kay Adams. “But there’s been no communication with anybody from the team since that (post) became a thing. It’s kind of like the weekly, ‘What’s up with Tae?’ thing. There’s always some sort of drama, but at the end of the day 17 (his uniform number) doesn’t create any of it, so people can say what they want.” Adams’ name regularly comes up in trade rumors because his salary cap hit rises dramatically next year, and there is a question of whether the Raiders might want to acquire assets for a potential rebuild. The trade talk “gets annoying for sure,” Davante Adams said on the show.

Giants hire Posey as ops president

The San Francisco Giants have hired former All-Star catcher Buster Posey as president of baseball operations and fired Farhan Zaidi. Team chairman Greg Johnson made the announcement Monday after the Giants finished 80-82 in manager Bob Melvin’s first season — with one more victory than in 2023. San Francisco hasn’t reached the playoffs since winning the NL West in 2021. The 37-year-old Posey (above) joined the club’s ownership group in September 2022, less than a year after his retirement in November 2021. “As we look ahead, I’m excited to share that Buster Posey will now take on a greater role as the new president of baseball operations,” Johnson said in a statement. “We are looking for someone who can define, direct and lead this franchise’s baseball philosophy and we feel that Buster is the perfect fit. Buster has the demeanor, intelligence and drive to do this job, and we are confident that he and Bob Melvin will work together to bring back winning baseball to San Francisco.” Posey was a seven-time All-Star with a career .302 batting average. The 2012 NL MVP was selected fifth overall by San Francisco in the 2008 amateur draft.

MLB attendance up almost 1%

Major League Baseball’s average attendance rose 0.9% this season, increasing in consecutive years for the first time since 2011-12. MLB drew 71.35 million fans over 2,413 gates for an average of 29,568, its highest since 30,042 in 2017, the commissioner’s office said Tuesday. The total was up 0.8% from last year’s 70.75 million in 2,415 gates. MLB drew 64.56 million and averaged 29,295 in 2023, up from 64.56 million and 26,843 in 2022. MLB drew 69.63 million in 2018 and dropped to 68.49 million in 2019, the last season before the coronavirus pandemic caused the 2020 season to be played without fans and much of 2021 in front of limited capacities. Five teams topped 3 million, down from eight in 2023. The Los Angeles Dodgers topped the major leagues at 3.94 million and have led each year since 2013, other than the 2020 season without fans. Philadelphia was second at 3.36 million, followed by San Diego at 3.33 million, the New York Yankees at 3.31 million and Atlanta at 3.01 million. They were followed by the Chicago Cubs at 2.91 million, St. Louis at 2.88 million, Houston at 2.84 million, Toronto at 2.68 million and Boston at 2.66 million.

— Associated Press