Why Will Smith Has Been the Unsung Hero of the Dodgers This Postseason
The Los Angeles Dodgers entered the postseason with a glaring weakness — pitching. But one man has been able to help turn that weakness into a strength, and he isn’t getting enough credit for it.
Will Smith has been the unsung hero throughout this postseason as the Dodgers pitched their fourth shutout of the playoffs on Wednesday night in an 8-0 win against the New York Mets in Game 3 of the National League Championship Series.
Los Angeles is one shutout shy of tying the Cleveland five shutouts in 2016 and Smith has called every pitch.
Read more: Dodgers Pitching Staff On the Verge of Unthinkable Postseason History
The staff and its backstop are completely locked in and that outweighs any struggles Smith might be having at the plate.
“My preparation doesn’t really change,” Smith said before Game 4 on Thursday afternoon. “I just go one pitch at a time with those guys. But they’ve been nails. They’ve been really good just going out and executing, putting guys away and putting up zeros. They’re doing really well right now. Just trying to keep them going.”
Smith’s game plan has had to adapt with whoever is on the mound which is no small feat. Look at what he did with Walker Buehler on Wednesday getting 18 whiffs in just four innings of shutout baseball.
“I throw what Will puts down,” Buehler said after the win. “I think this series, and this playoffs, I think is as in sync with the pitching staff as Will has ever been, and he’s calling really good games.
“I trust what he sees more than anyone. I trust what he sees more than what I see. So I think that’s just a tip of the cap to him.”
Even manager Dave Roberts gave Smith his flowers on Thursday afternoon because what he has been doing calling shutouts with six, seven, even eight pitchers in a single game is almost unheard of.
“I think Will is doing a fantastic job just sharpening every part of it – whether it’s catching the baseball, whether it’s the right pitch at the right time, game-calling with urgency. And to the pitcher’s credit and Mark Prior, they’re just really locking in and they’re doing a fantastic job. I think it’s all a compilation of that.”
Smith deserves more credit than what fans are giving him. Sure, his four hits in 27 at-bats and .148/.303/.259 slash line this postseason isn’t ideal. But he isn’t carrying that disappointment with him onto the field.
Eventually, the ball will start to fall for him. He has more walks (six) than strikeouts (five) and is hitting the ball hard when he puts it in play. But for now, the Dodgers just need him to continue calling brilliant games behind the plate.
After all, pitching and defense wins championships.
Photo Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images
