May 3 — Adam Zebrowski

Columbus Clingstones broadcaster Jack Johnson visited with catcher Adam Zebrowski at Synovus Park in Columbus, Georgia. 

Zebrowski discussed the Clingstones’ home run binge to begin the season, delivering the club’s first walk-off home run against Biloxi in April, and the offensive progress he has made since the second half of the 2025 season. He also shared what his routine looks like on days he is not catching, his experience finishing his degree during the season, and the support his parents have provided throughout his professional career.

Transcript

SPEAKER_01 0:00

Back on the Columbus Klingstones pregame show at Sinovis Park as we wrap up a six-game homestand against the Montgomery Biscuits. I'm with one of my favorite players on the team, Adam Sabrowski, catcher for the Stones. This team has hit 40 home runs through their first 26 games, so I want to start by giving you a stat. That's the most home runs by any team in the Southern League through 26 games since 2005. What is going on with this team to start the year?

SPEAKER_00 0:26

Give a lot of props to our heading coach Grant Kay and new coordinator Johnny Washington and all honestly all the hitting coaches from spring training to now. Good reports and just executing game plans. And I think just like sometimes laying off the you know 2-2 slider in the dirt and then getting a 3-2 heater or hanging slider and doing damage when we when we know we can. So it's just putting the barrel on the ball, a lot of experienced hitters. So I think all that combined is just like giving us a lot of success.

SPEAKER_01 1:00

So you have a bunch of those 40 homers as well. You've hit five home runs faster at this point in the season than you have at any point in your career, including that walk-off homer against Biloxi, which was the first walk-off homer in the history of this franchise. Can you take me through that moment? I know it was two weeks ago now, but what was that moment like in the 12th against the Shuckers?

SPEAKER_00 1:21

Yeah, I think uh I missed my opportunity in the 10th. Um, you know, hit a weak ground ball the first. Um so coming up again with a chance to to end the game after uh the pat hit the hit the knock to tie it, and then he steals he gets a second, and uh kind of took a weight off my shoulders when he got to second because there's two outs, and it was just like you know, a single does it single ends the game as opposed to a double. But um kind of same thing I was just talking about. It's like laying off the pitcher's pitches and then uh kind of forcing him to throw something over the middle of the plate and putting a barrel on the ball, but it was uh surreal feeling, yeah.

SPEAKER_01 2:02

Do you have other walk-off homers over the course of your career? It doesn't have to be pro career, but just over the course of your life?

SPEAKER_00 2:08

Only one other uh walk-off homer, and it was last year, or two years ago, excuse me, with uh Rome, walked it off and uh got us one one game closer to a playoff spot, and we clinched the next game, but yeah, that was the only other walk-off home run. So that was a really memorable moment.

SPEAKER_01 2:25

When we caught up last year, you were really starting to turn your season around at the plate. You've continued that into the first 26 games of this season. Your average is 100 points higher, your OPS is 200 points higher from the first half last season. You said you did a lot of work with Grant K. You worked on some stuff, you didn't want to give away any trade secrets then. I'm not asking you to do that here, but what do you think are the things that have fallen into place for you to get into this groove at the double eight level?

SPEAKER_00 2:51

I think part of it's experience, um, seeing more pitchers, understanding the way they attack and how they pitch at this level, and then uh focusing on game plan. Uh I did some work with some other hitting coaches this offseason too, and have like passed that with Grant and just like just you know, like in any office space, just gelling ideas, brainstorming, getting new stuff. And I think just at the end of the day, it's about realizing there's there's life bigger than baseball, and getting out isn't the end of the world, and that kind of takes the weight off your shoulders and uh kind of puts everything into perspective, and then it's like take it one day at a time, you're not losing your mind over, you know, a couple bad games or a bad week, and then um just kind of calms everything down for you.

SPEAKER_01 3:38

I love that you mentioned the word perspective there because the perspective I have of your position with this team is one of leadership, but it's also having to get along with just about everyone, which isn't called upon with really anyone else besides a catcher to work with a pitching staff that has changed so much to begin the year, to work with the hitting coach or to gel inside a lineup. I mean, how have you managed that over the course of your life? What have you learned up into this point about hey, I have to get along with the starting pitcher, I have to be on the same page studying their reports, and then I also have to face their pitcher three or four times a night as well.

SPEAKER_00 4:14

Yeah, I think um, like I said, I give a lot of credit to the coaching staff because they do a good job of balancing it, but at the end of the day, it's just being personable, letting people know you care and you have their best interests at heart. So I think putting those two together, it's just like you find more of like a friendship and and hanging out with guys off the field too, to just like develop a relationship and you know ensure that you trust them and they trust you.

SPEAKER_01 4:42

So let's go through one of those like Owen Hackman last night who came up to make his double A debut. Now, you guys are all familiar with each other from being in the same organization and from being at the complex in spring training, but when they get up to double A and it's on short notice because of all the rain we've had this week and all the roster moves, what are the things you try to latch on to quickly to one make them feel comfortable and get them ready for their first ever start at this level?

SPEAKER_00 5:06

There's only so much you can do, but I think uh just walking through the lineup, you know, and just like and like just telling him that we played against these guys many times. Like, I understand their hitters, understand the way to attack them, um but it's it's still the same game, you know, telling him that, like it's still the same game. You're still throwing a baseball, you have a defense behind you, um, there's an umpire behind the plate, like everything's the same. It's just players are a little bit smarter, um, a little bit older, a little more experienced. So, but just try and slow the game down because the game can speed up on you as you as you go up uh pretty quickly. So I think slowing it down and just like trusting what got you here.

SPEAKER_01 5:51

So today you're not in the lineup, but that doesn't mean it's necessarily an off day for EZ because I know, especially with two catchers on the roster, now Tyler Tolvey's coming back, so you guys have three. It's still work. You're still heavily involved in the process of getting the team prepared to play. What are the things that you're doing on a day you're not in the lineup? Because I'm not gonna say off day, it's a very active one for you.

SPEAKER_00 6:15

Very much so. Um, you have the relievers that sometimes want to get off the mound and throw a couple pitches depending on the day and how much they've thrown this week. Um, your starters are gonna have a bullpen, so you have you know, you're catching a little bit there. Typically, maybe not on a Sunday, but most other days you have some work in the cages, defense work, obviously hitting in the cages. Um, and then typically on the field, you're doing some sort of uh more more defense and like throwing to bases, and but it's always a throwing day, you know, as especially as a catcher. I want to continue throwing, just keep getting my arms stronger and in more shape to deal with as many throws as we do in a day, and then obviously getting in the gym, working out, and then some sort of recovery, uh and then I always have to mix in a crossword and a sudoku.

SPEAKER_01 7:04

Yeah, absolutely. So you do all of that on top of getting your degree, which was announced at the ballpark last night. So congratulations to you. What has that process been like over the last few years? Because I know you've been doing a lot of online classes recently.

SPEAKER_00 7:19

Yeah, I first I give a shout out to my mom, dad, brother, and then Pete Labin too, just for uh for recognizing that and uh give me a shout-out during the game yesterday. I was very cool. But it's been tough at times, just you know, you go get home from a game, it's 10:30, 11 o'clock, and you have two assignments to do that night. Um, and same thing on a Sunday, you know, the week's ending, and you want to do laundry and get groceries and like get your uh place back in in uh form, but you know, instead you gotta do a couple assignments first. So I think it was tough, but definitely worth it. Um, you know, just like to get that degree and have that sense of uh accomplishment on the back end too.

SPEAKER_01 8:04

So you mentioned your parents. Your parents have been so integral, obviously, to get you to this point of your life, to support you throughout the course of pursuing your dream and your own playing career. I know they must take a lot of pride in you getting that degree as well while still being a professional baseball player, that's spectacular. Can you give me the best story or one of the most impactful stories about the way they've supported your journey and your dream and your baseball career?

SPEAKER_00 8:30

Yeah, I I it wouldn't even just be one, it's just um I think it goes back to like when I was really young, you know, my 10 to 12 ages, and and even before that, when my dad was coaching my team, he would coach my brother's team too. And um, but they never I think the best thing they never did was force anything on us. They always let us make our own decisions, they'd guide us, you know, my my brother and I, but never force us into anything. And um we're never like you know, they were held us accountable, but it was never too hard on us, you know. Let us make mistakes and learn from mistakes. Um, but you know, all the traveling and the hotels and the money they spent just to let us enjoy our childhood and and the travel ball times and kind of like find our own way in life was really I think what would has helped my brother and I both get to where we are now. So, you know, sometimes you see that I think with where parents, and I'm not obviously a parent, but I think sometimes parents can be too hard on their kids forcing sports on them or um training and stuff, and they they never did that, they were always there as a hand if we needed something, you know, take us to the field to do extra work. But it was never like, hey, we have to do this. So I I think that was the best thing, and I can't thank them enough for their support. I'll tell you easy.

SPEAKER_01 9:49

I think one of my favorite parts of my job is that my parents get to be an active participant in it on the broadcast, and I imagine that must be kind of similar for you because your games are presented either on the radio or on streaming, whether it be here or in the spring, wherever you are throughout the season, making your AAA debut last year with Gwyneth. How do they kind of stay up with your career throughout the season on the field? And what are some of the conversations that happen off the field in season between you and them?

SPEAKER_00 10:18

Yeah, uh, we're texting every day and and calling too, so just keeping in touch, obviously, when they're not here, um and just like you know, making sure they're understanding what's going on from my perspective, and then just talking about life, you know, get my mind off of baseball for a little bit. But um they obviously know you very well just from hearing you every game because they're at home watching all of them, so uh they're they're obviously uh very big Jack Johnson fans now, too. So um yeah, they're just they keep up with it that way, and then anytime there's like something tough to see on a broadcast, they'll send me a text or call me and ask like what my perspective was. So yeah.

SPEAKER_01 11:02

Working through the rest of this season, you got to triple Aguinette to end the season last year. I know that's the goal to get there and a level higher. What are the things you feel like you have to either keep doing or unlock to get to that next level?

SPEAKER_00 11:17

Yeah, I um I think my throwing's been way better. Um blocking's been good. I just I think uh receiving, you know, keep improving that. Um it's been a tough year so far for everybody in this league, really. Um just as the the zone seems to be a little bit smaller. Um so I think that's one thing, and then you know, the bat, just try and keep uh keep showing some power, some some hard, hard hit balls, and then uh you know, limiting my miss, you know, limiting my swing and miss. Just stay on the barrel more.

SPEAKER_01 11:55

You've done a great job of that. You have one of the lowest chase rates on the team. You're off to a great start this season. You finished last year super strong, and I love seeing you succeed. So Adam Sebraski, thanks for taking the time, man.

SPEAKER_00 12:06

Thanks, Jay. Appreciate it.