Dodgers News: Will Smith Continues To Look For Ways To Improve His Game
Relative to other major league franchises, the Dodgers have been historically blessed at two positions: pitching and catching. From Roy Campanella in the 1950s to the early career of Mike Piazza in the 1990s, to right this very moment in Will Smith, the Dodgers boast an impressive lineage of backstops.
Smith announced his presence with authority after his midseason call-up in 2019, then quietly became one of the best catchers in baseball. Despite putting up above-average offensive numbers every year, he finally earned his first All-Star appearance in 2023.
In addition to his stellar bat, Smith has steadily improved his defensive game year after year. Early in his career, he struggled with framing and blocking pitches. That has greatly improved to the point that he’s widely considered one of the best all-around catchers in baseball.
Recently on MLB Network Radio, Dodgers bench coach Danny Lehmann commented on Smith and his work ethic,
He’s super conscious of what he wants to work on and when he wants to do it. Catching every single day in the big leagues is brutal, brutal on your body to stay strong throughout the year. But I think he does a really nice job of isolating his time on what he needs to do on a day in, day out basis.
To his credit, he’s super open to continue to get better and not really being stale in what he’s at or where he’s at right now.
Danny Lehman on MLB Network Radio
How Will Smith can improve
That second sentence by Lehmann rings especially true for the Dodgers’ catcher. The lineup performs best with Smith in it, but he’s not always available. In 2023, Smith ranked 11th in Major League Baseball in innings caught with 126. That number would have been higher if not for an early-season concussion, but it’s a given in any year that the Dodgers’ front office will be careful with how often Smith catches.
Another concern: Smith’s production at the plate has historically fallen late in the season, further echoing Lehmann’s statement. Smith’s OPS dropped nearly 200 points from .889 in the first half of last year to .701 in the second half.
Injuries aside, the beating a catcher’s body takes seems to affect Smith at the plate. Call it luck or just much-needed rest, the 28-year-old was one of the few Dodgers who produced anything during the 2023 NLDS, following a dubious 5-day break before the first round. He slashed .417/.417/.667 in those three games against the Diamondbacks.
Fortunately, according to Lehmann, it appears Smith is willing to put in the work to continue to get better. Dodger fans believe Smith’s best baseball is ahead of him. If true, he could have a monster year sandwiched in a lineup between two-time AL MVP Shohei Ohtani and silver-hammer-swinging Max Muncy.
Photo Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
Are you subscribed to our YouTube Channel? Subscribe and hit that notification bell to stay up to date on all the latest Dodgers news, rumors, interviews, live streams, and more!
I think the Dodgers have signed the top players who will also be great leaders by example, talking about work ethic, I think the rest of the roster will follow by example, jump on a work out routine to stay in shape throughout the season, stay on their game and successfully pull off another World series in 2024..
I think it’s time to bid farewell to Barnes. Especially if they don’t sign Kershaw. They have a couple of top-tier catchers in the minors. Austin may be a good defensive catcher, but he’s not special in that either. But offensively he is a gigantic hole that kills rallies and ends innings.
Beat way to maximize his potential is for him to learn Japanese.
Will looks a lot at the plate. I noticed he struck out looking quite a bit the past two seasons. Being relaxed is fine but, he seems too much so which makes him a passenger and not the driver.
Will has been a surprise since day one. His home run pop. His being oblivious to pressure. And his work ethic. He could have been an All-Star two other times if not for the numbers game of players on the All-Star roster. I am grateful he is a Dodger. As for Austin, we keep him. When Clayton re-signs; we discreetly transition him to a coaching position while using the IL if that is possible. We do need a look at Cartaya and Fedducia.
We shouldn’t forget Dalton Rushing..good solid up and rising catcher. Scouts seem to be very high on him as their future catcher. Cartaya has fallen off…
Smith seems to be the kind of guy who will keep getting better until age finally catches up around 35 or so. He can look forward to catching 3 of the top pitchers in the game today and plenty of baserunners to knock in.
FACT: Smith is not a GREAT defensive catcher. Besides not moving his feet and body properly to block errant pitches-many times attempting to backhand them with his glove-he’s a mediocre pitch-caller, with an average arm. His pitch selection, which is more important, is also lacking. Yes, he’s an OK hitter, but if LA can trade him for a frontline starter, and bring up one of their top-rated catchers, it might make sense to move him.
As you can see, we are not sold on him, especially as an All-Star catcher. There are numerous others, starting with the Phillies Realmuto, that are heads and tails above Smith. He’s a B level catcher who has not mastered calling pitches.
DO NOT LISTEN TO THE MEDIA HYPE!
Let’s get rid of Barnes, Lux & CT3. They are mediocre ball players. We need to upgrade from here
Al Brown