Aug 22, 2025; San Diego, California, USA; San Diego Padres relief pitcher Jason Adam (40) throws a pitch during the seventh inning against the Los Angeles Dodgers at Petco Park. Mandatory Credit: David Frerker-Imagn Images David Frerker-Imagn Images

Padres Pitcher Reveals Shocking Messages He's Received From Fans Regarding His Daughter

Originally posted on San Diego Padres on SI
By Nelson Espinal | Last updated Aug 25, 2025 12:30 PM ET

San Diego Padres reliever Jason Adam revealed some of the extreme hate comments that he has received via social media.

The modern athlete deals with unique challenges that the previous generations of players did not face.

With the rise of social media and sports gambling, players in all sports are the subject of hateful comments more than ever.

Whether it comes from poor performances that cause passionate fans to get upset, or a sports gambler who bet a lot of money on a specific player performing well, these comments can arrive regularly.

In a story by Annie Heilbrunn of the San Diego Union-Tribune, Adam revealed that social media comments can often cross the line, making their way into his personal life.

“Everything from the harmless ‘Retire, you’re worthless’ to some people who take it too far and are like, ‘I hope your daughter dies in a car crash,’” Adam said.

“Most people are just, like, mildly annoying. Then there’s a few that take it way too far.”

“(My wife) hates them worse. I kind of know what I signed up for. They’re harder when they start reaching out to the wives and bringing up kids’ names and stuff. To me, that’s way too far.”

Adam's issue is not unique; earlier this season, Houston Astros starting pitcher Lance McCullers was on the receiving end of threats to his family, leading him to hire security for his family and alert law enforcement.

The comments came after McCullers allowed seven runs in one-third of an inning.

“I understand people are very passionate and people love the Astros and love sports, but threatening to find my kids and murder them is a little bit tough to deal with,” McCullers said at the time of the incident.

“So just as a father I think there have been many, many threats over the years aimed at me mostly, and I think actually one or two people from other issues around baseball actually had to go to jail for things like that.

"But I think bringing kids into the equation, threatening to find them or next time they see us in public, they’re going to stab my kids to death, things like that, it’s tough to hear as a dad.”

As MLB's collective bargaining agreement comes to an end, protection for athletes who receive threats may be necessary.

Sports gambling and social media are not going anywhere, and the sport of baseball will need to address these threats.