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Josh Smith (infielder)

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Josh Smith
Smith with the Round Rock Express in 2022
Texas Rangers – No. 8
Utility player
Born: (1997-08-07) August 7, 1997 (age 27)
Baton Rouge, Louisiana, U.S.
Bats: Left
Throws: Right
MLB debut
May 30, 2022, for the Texas Rangers
MLB statistics
(through 2024 season)
Batting average.229
Home runs21
Runs batted in93
Stats at Baseball Reference Edit this at Wikidata
Teams
Career highlights and awards

Josh Harris Smith (born August 7, 1997) is an American professional baseball utility player for the Texas Rangers of Major League Baseball (MLB). He made his MLB debut in 2022.

Amateur career

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Smith attended Catholic High School in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.[1] He was drafted by the Detroit Tigers in the 38th round of the 2016 MLB draft, but did not sign and attended Louisiana State University (LSU), where he played college baseball for the LSU Tigers.[2] He started for the Tigers as a freshman,[3] hitting .281/.407/.409/.816 with 5 home runs and 48 RBI. Smith played in the Cape Cod League in the summer of 2017 for the Harwich Mariners, hitting .382/.478/.513/.991 with 3 home runs and 12 RBI.[4][5] Smith missed all but six games of his sophomore year due to a stress reaction in his back.[6][7] He returned as a starter in his junior year, hitting .346/.433/.533/.966 with 9 home runs and 41 RBI.[3]

Professional career

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New York Yankees

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The New York Yankees selected Smith in the second round, with the 67th overall selection, of the 2019 MLB draft.[3][8] He signed with New York for a $967,700 signing bonus.[9] He played for the Staten Island Yankees following his signing, hitting .324/.450/.477/.927 with three home runs and 15 RBIs over 33 games.[10] He did not play in 2020 due to the cancellation of the Minor League Baseball season due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Smith started the 2021 season with the Tampa Tarpons of Low-A Southeast and was promoted to the Hudson Valley Renegades of High-A East,[11] hitting a combined .324/.448/.641/1.089 with 9 home runs, 24 RBI, and 17 stolen bases.[12]

Texas Rangers

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On July 29, 2021, the Yankees traded Smith, along with Glenn Otto, Ezequiel Durán, and Trevor Hauver, to the Texas Rangers in exchange for Joey Gallo and Joely Rodríguez.[13] He was assigned to the Hickory Crawdads of the High-A East; after nine games with Hickory, the Rangers promoted Smith to the Frisco RoughRiders of the Double-A Central.[14] Smith spent his 2022 season minor league time with the Round Rock Express of the Triple-A Pacific Coast League,[15] hitting .290/.395/.466/.861 6 home runs, 45 RBI, and 9 stolen bases over 55 games.

On May 30, 2022, Texas selected Smith's contract and promoted him to the major leagues for the first time.[16][17] He made his MLB debut that night versus the Tampa Bay Rays.[18] He recorded his first career hit, a single off Drew Rasmussen, and finished the game with three hits.[19] Smith was placed on the injured list with a sprained left AC joint on June 4.[20] On July 11, 2022, Smith hit an inside-the-park home run against the Oakland Athletics, the first home run of his career.[21] Over 73 games for Texas in 2022, Smith hit .197/.307/.249/.556 with 2 home runs and 16 RBI.[22]

In 2023, Smith hit .185/.304/.328/.663[23] and won the World Series, though he did not make a plate appearance in the playoffs. In 2024, Smith hit .258/.337/.394/.731,[24] winning the Silver Slugger Award for the utility position.

References

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  1. ^ Weathers, William (August 4, 2015). "Injury doesn't deter Catholic High's Josh Smith". NOLA.com. Retrieved July 29, 2021.
  2. ^ "Get to know Yankees 2019 second-round draft pick Josh Smith". SNY. June 3, 2019. Retrieved July 29, 2021.
  3. ^ a b c Alexander, Wilson (June 3, 2019). "LSU shortstop, Catholic High graduate Josh Smith taken 67th overall by New York Yankees". The Advocate. Baton Rouge, La. Retrieved July 29, 2021.
  4. ^ West, Glen (October 9, 2017). "Josh Smith, Jake Slaughter adjust to new roles in middle of the infield". The Reveille. Retrieved July 29, 2021.
  5. ^ "#15 Josh Smith - Profile". pointstreak.com. Retrieved May 29, 2022.
  6. ^ Miller, Brody (July 12, 2019). "LSU infielder Josh Smith shut down for the rest of the season". The Times-Picayune. New Orleans. Retrieved July 29, 2021.
  7. ^ Moran, James (February 14, 2019). "Cover Story | How loss ignited Josh Smith's burning desire to be great". Retrieved July 29, 2021.
  8. ^ Holland, Brain (June 4, 2019). "LSU SS Josh Smith Drafted by the New York Yankees". BRProud.com. Retrieved July 29, 2021.
  9. ^ Brody, Peter (April 24, 2021). "Yankees 2021 Prospect Preview: Josh Smith". Pinstripe Alley. Retrieved July 29, 2021.
  10. ^ Rabalais, Scott (April 1, 2020). "Rabalais: Former LSU SS Josh Smith waits in limbo to see if and when pro baseball restarts". The Advocate. Baton Rouge, La. Retrieved July 29, 2021.
  11. ^ Miller, Randy (June 8, 2021). "Why Yankees promote 2 shortstop prospects, but not raking Anthony Volpe". NJ.com. Retrieved July 24, 2024.
  12. ^ "Josh Smith Amateur, College & Minor Leagues Statistics & History". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved July 29, 2021.
  13. ^ Hoch, Brian (July 29, 2021). "Yankees get Gallo in 6-player deal". MLB.com. Retrieved July 29, 2021.
  14. ^ Halicke, Chris (February 1, 2022). "After The 'Craziest' Year of His Life, Josh Smith is Excited For Texas Rangers' Direction - Sports Illustrated Texas Rangers News, Analysis and More". Si.com. Retrieved May 31, 2022.
  15. ^ Grant, Evan (March 26, 2022). "Rangers notebook: Though a long shot to make the roster, prospect Josh Smith has coaches raving". Dallasnews.com. Retrieved May 31, 2022.
  16. ^ "Rangers put Miller on IL, bring up Josh Smith for MLB debut". USA Today. May 30, 2022. Retrieved May 31, 2022.
  17. ^ Franques, Bill (May 30, 2022). "Josh Smith Called Up to Texas Rangers MLB Roster". LSU Tigers. Retrieved May 31, 2022.
  18. ^ Weaver, Levi (May 30, 2022). "Rangers call up Josh Smith; what's the plan for playing time?". The Athletic. Retrieved May 31, 2022.
  19. ^ "Rangers' Miller on IL; Smith tallies 3 hits in debut". ESPN.com. May 30, 2022. Retrieved May 31, 2022.
  20. ^ The, AP (June 4, 2022). "Rangers' Duran makes MLB debut; Smith to IL". ESPN.com. Retrieved June 4, 2022.
  21. ^ "Former LSU infielder Josh Smith hits first career HR". July 12, 2022.
  22. ^ Postins, Matthew (October 12, 2022). "Rangers 40-Man Roster Wraps: Josh Smith". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved January 8, 2023.
  23. ^ https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/s/smithjo11.shtml
  24. ^ https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/s/smithjo11.shtml
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