“That surprised all of us,” said Matheny. “You never know how a guy’s going to handle that without ever doing it before, but he was very prepared and did a great job.”

Adams said, “It was different to get used to (but) I looked forward to that. Coming off the bench, with a runner in scoring position, your focus gets dialed in more.”

Hitting coach John Mabry, a good pinch hitter in his career, advised Adams that “you’re not going to get a lot of good pitches as a pinch hitter. First good pitch you see, you go at it, without any doubt you’re going to swing at it.”

If outfielder Oscar Taveras proves he is ready by the end of spring training, Adams realizes that Taveras might wind up in right field, Craig at first base and himself back as the club’s top pinch hitter. And Adams said he would be all right with that.

“It’s just an honor to put this jersey on on a daily basis,” he said. “And if that’s what my role has to be this year, I’ll be thankful to do that again.

“When you’ve got guys like Allen and Oscar, you need to get them in the lineup. If that’s what Mike and Mo (general manager John Mozeliak) want, then that’s what it’s going to be.”