Dwight Smith Jr.
Smith with the Baltimore Orioles in 2019
Charleston Dirty Birds – No. 28
Outfielder
Born: (1992-10-26) October 26, 1992
Peachtree City, Georgia, U.S.
Bats: Left
Throws: Right
MLB debut
May 18, 2017, for the Toronto Blue Jays
MLB statistics
(through 2020 season)
Batting average.254
Home runs17
Runs batted in67
Teams

John Dwight Smith Jr. (born October 26, 1992) is an American professional baseball outfielder for the Charleston Dirty Birds of the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball. He has played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Toronto Blue Jays and Baltimore Orioles.

Smith is the son of former MLB player Dwight Smith.[1][2]

Professional career

Toronto Blue Jays

Smith attended McIntosh High School and was drafted by the Blue Jays in the 1st round (53rd overall) of the 2011 Major League Baseball draft.[3][4] Smith made his professional baseball debut in 2012 and split the season with the Rookie Bluefield Blue Jays and Low-A Vancouver Canadians, hitting a combined .212 with 4 home runs and 29 runs batted in (RBI).[4] He spent the 2013 season with the Class-A Lansing Lugnuts, where he batted .284 in 109 games, with 7 home runs, 46 RBI, and 25 stolen bases.[4]

Smith was promoted to the High-A Dunedin Blue Jays for the 2014 season. On April 6, 2014, he hit a pair of solo home runs against Cole Hamels, the first two home run game of his career.[5] On August 26, the Blue Jays organization announced that Smith would play for the Mesa Solar Sox of the Arizona Fall League at the completion of the 2014 season.[6] He finished the 2014 season having batted .284 in 121 games played, with 12 home runs and 60 RBI. He stole 15 bases, and posted an OPS over .800 for the first time in his career.[4] On September 24, Smith was named the MVP for Dunedin in 2014.[7] He was promoted to the Double-A New Hampshire Fisher Cats at the start of the 2015 season, and played the entire season there, batting .265 with 7 home runs and 44 RBI in 117 games played.[4] Smith was not added to the Blue Jays 40-man roster at the end of the 2015 season, making him eligible for the Rule 5 draft. MLB.com columnist Jonathan Mayo named him one of the top available prospects heading into the draft.[8]

Smith was invited to Major League spring training on January 12, 2016,[9] and reassigned to minor league camp on March 7.[10] He was assigned to New Hampshire to open the 2016 minor league season.[11] Smith played 126 games for the Fisher Cats in 2016, and hit .265 with a career-high 15 home runs and 74 RBI.[4] He was assigned to the Triple-A Buffalo Bisons to open the 2017 season.

On May 18, 2017, Smith was called up by the Blue Jays and made his debut the same day against the Atlanta Braves.[12] He went 0–2 with a walk in Toronto's 9–0 win.[13] He was optioned back to Triple-A Buffalo on May 20[14] and recalled on May 24 after Anthony Alford was placed on the disabled list. Smith recorded the first hit of his career in the Blue Jays 8–4 win over the Milwaukee Brewers that day, and was optioned back to Buffalo following the game.[15] He was recalled on September 4.[16]

On March 5, 2019, Smith was designated for assignment.[17]

Baltimore Orioles

On March 9, 2019, Smith was traded to the Baltimore Orioles in exchange for international pool money.[18] He began the season as the starting left fielder.[19] On May 31, 2019, Smith hit his first career grand slam off Drew Pomeranz as the Orioles won 9–6 over the San Francisco Giants.[20] Smith's season was cut short due to injury, playing in just 101 games. He finished hitting .241 with 13 home runs and 53 runs batted in.

In 2020, Smith appeared in 21 games and hit .222/.306/.365 with six runs batted in over 72 plate appearances.[21] He was designated for assignment on August 22, 2020,[22] and became a free agent on November 2.

Cincinnati Reds

On December 7, 2020, Smith signed a minor league contract with the Cincinnati Reds organization.[23] He was assigned to the Triple-A Louisville Bats to begin the 2021 season. In 36 games for Louisville, Smith slashed .220/.327/.283 with 1 home run and 17 RBI before being released on June 20, 2021.[24]

Acereros de Monclova

On July 9, 2021, Smith signed with the Acereros de Monclova of the Mexican League.[25]

Chicago White Sox

Smith signed a minor league contract with the Chicago White Sox on February 22, 2022.[26] He was released on May 7, 2022.

Acereros de Monclova (second stint)

On May 25, 2022, Smith re-signed with the Acereros de Monclova of the Mexican League.[27] He was released on June 4, 2022.

Lexington Legends

On June 12, 2022, Smith signed with the Lexington Legends of the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball. Smith played in 12 games for Lexington, hitting .171/.292/.366 with 2 home runs and 7 RBI. He became a free agent after the season.

Charleston Dirty Birds

On April 13, 2023, Smith signed with the Charleston Dirty Birds of the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball.[28] In 120 games for Charleston, he batted .331/.426/.569 with 22 home runs, 64 RBI, and 24 stolen bases. Following the season, Smith was named an Atlantic League All–Star.[29]

References

  1. ↑ Centennial College journalism students (March 5, 2013). "Jays' prospect Dwight Smith Jr. looks to leave his MLB mark". Torontoobserver.ca. Retrieved December 14, 2013.
  2. ↑ Rymer, Zachary D. (21 June 2020). "Making Pops Proud: Ranking Every 2020 MLB Player Whose Dad Also Was in the Bigs". Bleacher Report. Retrieved 23 July 2022.
  3. ↑ Chisholm, Gregor (June 6, 2011). "Toronto drafts Dwight Smith Jr. with 53rd pick". mlb.com. Retrieved December 14, 2013.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Dwight Smith Minor League Statistics & History". Baseball-Reference. Retrieved September 4, 2014.
  5. ↑ Seiner, Jake (April 6, 2014). "Smith takes Hamels yard twice in Jays win". MiLB.com. Retrieved June 27, 2014.
  6. ↑ "Dalton Pompey and others headed to the Arizona Fall League". jaysjournal.com. August 26, 2014. Retrieved August 26, 2014.
  7. ↑ Chisholm, Gregor (September 24, 2014). "Blue Jays name MVPs in Minor League system". MLB.com. Retrieved September 24, 2014.
  8. ↑ Mayo, Jonathan (November 21, 2015). "Rule 5 preview: 10 prospects eligible for Draft". MLB.com. Retrieved November 21, 2015.
  9. ↑ "Blue Jays Invite 14 to Spring Training". bluebirdbanter.com. January 12, 2016. Retrieved January 13, 2016.
  10. ↑ "Ben Nicholson-Smith on Twitter". Twitter. March 7, 2016. Retrieved March 7, 2016.
  11. ↑ Rosenbaum, Mike (April 7, 2016). "Where the Blue Jays' Top 30 prospects are starting the season". MLB.com. Retrieved April 8, 2016.
  12. ↑ "Blue Jays suspend Kevin Pillar 2 games, recall Smith Jr". Sportsnet. May 18, 2017. Retrieved May 18, 2017.
  13. ↑ "Blue Jays vs. Braves – Game Summary – May 18, 2017 – ESPN". ESPN.com. Retrieved 2019-07-29.
  14. ↑ "Blue Jays activate catcher Russell Martin from DL, will start vs. Orioles". Sportsnet. May 20, 2017. Retrieved May 20, 2017.
  15. ↑ "Blue Jays option OF Dwight Smith to triple-A after he collects first hit". Sportsnet. May 24, 2017. Retrieved May 24, 2017.
  16. ↑ "Vlad Jr. not part of Blue Jays September callups". Toronto Sun. Retrieved 2019-07-29.
  17. ↑ "Blue Jays officially sign right-handed starter Clay Buchholz". Sportsnet. March 5, 2019. Retrieved March 5, 2019.
  18. ↑ "Blue Jays trade outfielder Dwight Smith Jr. to Orioles". Sportsnet. March 8, 2019. Retrieved March 8, 2019.
  19. ↑ "Dwight Smith Jr. 2019 Fielding Log". Baseball Reference. June 5, 2019. Retrieved June 5, 2019.
  20. ↑ "Orioles' slammin' win, by the numbers". MLB.com. Retrieved 2019-07-29.
  21. ↑ "Dwight Smith Jr. Stats".
  22. ↑ "Orioles Designate Dwight Smith Jr., Select Mason Williams". 22 August 2020.
  23. ↑ Byrne, Connor (December 7, 2020). "Reds Sign Dwight Smith Jr. To Minors Deal". mlbtraderumors.com. Retrieved December 8, 2020.
  24. ↑ "Reds Sign Mallex Smith, Release Dwight Smith Jr". 22 June 2021.
  25. ↑ "DWIGHT SMITH JR APORTARÁ PODER A LA OFENSIVA DEL CAMPEÓN" (in Spanish). 9 July 2021. Retrieved July 9, 2021.
  26. ↑ Adams, Steve (February 22, 2022). "White Sox, Dwight Smith Jr. Agree To Minor League Deal". mlbtraderumors.com. Retrieved February 22, 2022.
  27. ↑ "DWIGHT SMITH JR. ESTÁ DE REGRESO CON ACEREROS" (in Spanish). 25 May 2022. Retrieved 26 May 2022.
  28. ↑ "Atlantic League Professional Baseball: Transactions".
  29. ↑ "Atlantic League names 2023 Postseason All-Star Team". atlanticleague.com. Retrieved December 26, 2023.
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