The Sonoma County Crushers, the lone original member of the Western Baseball League (WBL), signed middle infielder Winter Adames out of SUNY College at Old Westbury on Sunday, July 1.

Adames, a switch hitter, batted .432 in his senior season at Old Westbury of the Knickerbocker Conference, stole 40 bases and was a Division III Honorable Mention All-American Adames becomes the first athlete out of Old Westbury to sign a professional sports contract and will give the Crushers much needed depth in the infield.

"The Western League is very competitive," said Adames upon signing. "Many of the players in the league are recently out of college or just released from other major or minor league clubs."

The Major League influence extends to the coaching staff, as Adames will be coached by former New York Met Kevin Mitchell, now hitting instructor for the Crushers.

The 5'9" 170 lb. rookie was the Knickerbocker Conference Player of the Year and led Division III in both stolen bases and triples (10). He stole 134 bases in his college career and was a three-time first-team all-conference selection and one-time second-team nominee. Adames batted .390 in his college career and his average climbed every season.

Adames entered Sunday's game in the eighth inning and reached on an error by the St. George Pioneerzz second baseman Brian Grebeck (brother of Major Leaguer Craig Grebeck). Adames then had an assist at shortstop in the ninth inning of the Crushers' 17-7 victory. Sonoma County is currently 21-19 on the season.