Will Smith is having a spectacular season for the Los Angeles Dodgers.
The 30-year-old catcher currently leads the National League with a .302 batting average to go along with 15 homers and 54 runs batted-in. For good measure, Smith has also thrown out 13 runners aiming to steal a base this year (ranking him in the top-10 across all of baseball).
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One could make a real argument that he’s been the most consistent player all year long for the team given the injuries and inconsistency which has been found all across the roster.
After Saturday’s stellar performance, manager Dave Roberts had some glowing praise for his catcher. He even went as far to say that he’s better than the arguable AL MVP frontrunner in Seattle Mariners catcher Cal “Big Dumper” Raleigh.
“We feel that Will is the best catcher in baseball in totality,” Roberts said. “And [Saturday night] he showed it with his arm. Essentially, they played 24 outs. And so when you look at that first inning and how the pitch count was creeping up there for Blake [Snell], but to get help by way of the caught-stealings was huge, and it got Blake into rhythm.”
The Smith vs. Raleigh argument is a fascinating one. Raleigh has far more pop — as he’s clubbed 47 homers as of Aug. 17. He’s also driven in 102 runs in the process. Both numbers far exceed Smith. Raleigh has also thrown out 16 runners (second-most in the sport).
On the other hand, Smith is far better when it comes to batting average and getting on base. Raleigh’s OBP is .359. Smith’s is .408. Raleigh also strikes out at a considerably higher rate. Raleigh’s chase rate is also far higher in comparison, and Smith squares the ball up 77 percent of the time (whereas it’s six percent for Raleigh).
While both players are terrific, it’s not surprising to see Roberts gush over his player. Smith is a homegrown talent having been drafted in the first round of the 2016 draft. Since then, he’s moved his way through the system — making three All-Star appearances and helping the ballclub win two World Series.
While Raleigh may be having a better year comprehensively than Smith, there’s no questioning from an objectivity standpoint who’s had the better career up to this point.
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Photo Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images
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3 Responses
I agree he’s definitely the best catcher in baseball!
Roberts keeps sitting smith down he tge only cat her that is given rests,he should play every game,roberts should not be rotating players like he does,no other team does
Exactly. The best hitter in baseball sat down two or three days a week for a sub .200 hitter makes little sense. But, he play’s Conforto everyday, so one could question his decisions on game day.