Photo By Ernest Dove
Kevin Smith, LHP
2018 Stats: 4-1, 0.76 ERA, 0.761 WHIP, 2.3 BB/9, 10.6 K/9
2019 Stats: 8-7, 3.15 ERA, 1.256 WHIP, 3.0 BB/9, 10.0 K/9
When Smith was selected in the seventh round of the 2018 draft out of the University of Georgia, there was the expectation he had the type of stuff to make it to the Major Leagues. That stuff was widely expected to lead him to being a reliever and not a starter.
In fact, after his first professional season, Baseball America would say of Smith, “Given his low arm slot, slider-oriented approach and early indicators against lefthanded batters, Smith might ultimately fit best as a matchup reliever.” This wasn’t just scouts and draft analysts hazarding a guess.
When Smith was in the University of Georgia, the team had mostly used him in the bullpen. Over the course of his three years there, he would
In 2018, Smith had gone from the Opening Day starter to the bullpen, and his coach Scott Stricklin spoke about how much it improved the team saying, “That was the turning point of our season, as the bullpen got transformed in that Citadel game, and Kevin Smith has been a huge part for us through this stretch.” (Brandon Sudge, Macon Telegraph).
Despite his being a reliever for much of the 2018 season and Smith’s thriving out there, the Mets would give him an opportunity to establish himself as a starter. That would start from day one with Smith being St. Lucie’s Opening Day starter.
After a slow start where he didn’t pitch out of the fifth over his first three starts with a 4.85 ERA and a 2.4 K/BB, Smith would take-off, and he would put together a season which culminated with his winning a Sterling Award as the best minor league pitcher in the Mets farm system.
After his first three starts to the season, Smith pitched like a top of the rotation starter. From April 20 until his promotion to Double-A, Smith would make 14 starts going 5-3 with a 2.72 ERA, 2.4 BB/9, and an 11.0 K/9. What makes those numbers all the more remarkable is he would have some level of bad luck with a .339 BABIP.
More than the stats was how he got there. As noted by Baseball Savant, he not only showed an ability to mix-up his pitches, but also to throw good pitches effectively:
Smith doesn’t have the type of power stuff that his 6-foot-5 frame might suggest, but he knows how to be effective with his three-pitch mix and masks everything he throws with natural deception. He pitches with average velocity, typically sitting in the low 90s, but his heater plays at a higher effective velocity because he gets good extension to the plate and throws it with a high spin rate that nets him whiffs inside the zone. His late-biting slider gives him a second swing-and-miss offering, and he’s made strides in developing a quality changeup since entering the pro ranks.
Suddenly, Smith isn’t being talked about as a reliever. Now, when outlets talk about him, they refer to him as a number four or five starter. Of course, if Smith is able to repeat what he did in 2019 we will see his spin rate and swing-and-miss stuff, we may very well see him talked about being much more than that.
