Former MLB First‑Round Pick Jordyn Adams Joins SMU Football

A former first-round Major League Baseball draft pick is attempting one of sports' most unusual career pivots, leaving professional baseball to pursue college football nearly a decade after he last played the sport competitively. Jordyn Adams, 26, has enrolled at Southern Methodist University and plans to join the Mustangs' football program as a wide receiver this fall.

Adams was released from his minor league contract with the Milwaukee Brewers' Triple-A affiliate in late May, which opened the door for this dramatic change. His baseball career spanned eight seasons, primarily in the minor leagues, after the Los Angeles Angels selected him with the 17th overall pick in the 2018 MLB Draft. He appeared in 38 major league games with the Angels and the Baltimore Orioles, compiling a .165 batting average with one home run and five runs batted in.

The decision marks a return to the sport where Adams was once considered a premier national prospect. Coming out of Green Hope High School in Cary, North Carolina, in 2018, he was a five-star football recruit, ranked as the nation's No. 3 wide receiver and the No. 14 overall player in his class. He had originally committed to play both...