Dwight Smith Jr.

1. Overview

John Dwight Smith Jr. (born October 26, 1992) is an American professional baseball outfielder who currently plays for the Charros de Jalisco of the Mexican League. He previously played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Toronto Blue Jays and Baltimore Orioles. Smith, a right-handed thrower and left-handed batter, is notable as the son of former MLB outfielder Dwight Smith.

2. Early life and background

John Dwight Smith Jr. was born on October 26, 1992, in Peachtree City, Fayette County, Georgia, United States. He is the son of Dwight Smith, who played as an outfielder in Major League Baseball from 1989 to 1996. Smith Jr. attended McIntosh High School in his home state.

3. Professional career

Dwight Smith Jr.'s professional baseball career began in 2011 after being drafted by the Toronto Blue Jays, leading him through various minor league levels, Major League Baseball, the Mexican League, and independent leagues.

3.1. Toronto Blue Jays (2011-2019)

Smith was drafted by the Toronto Blue Jays in the 1st round, 53rd overall, of the 2011 Major League Baseball draft. He signed his professional contract on August 4, 2011.

He made his professional baseball debut in 2012, splitting the season between the Rookie Bluefield Blue Jays in the Appalachian League and the Low-A Vancouver Canadians in the Northwest League. In 41 games with Bluefield, he batted .226 with 4 home runs, 21 runs batted in (RBI), and 1 stolen base. For Vancouver, he played 18 games, hitting .175 with 8 RBI.

In 2013, Smith spent the entire season with the Class-A Lansing Lugnuts. In 109 games, he batted .284 with 7 home runs, 46 RBI, 120 hits, and 25 stolen bases.

Dwight Smith Jr. playing for the Class-A Lansing Lugnuts in May 2013.

Smith was promoted to the High-A Dunedin Blue Jays for the 2014 season. On April 6, 2014, he hit two solo home runs against Cole Hamels, marking the first two-home run game of his career. He was registered on the 7-day disabled list from July 26 to August 6, 2014. In 121 games for Dunedin, he batted .284 with 12 home runs, 60 RBI, 134 hits, and 15 stolen bases, achieving an OPS over .800 for the first time. On September 24, Smith was named the Most Valuable Player for the Dunedin Blue Jays for the 2014 season. He was also selected as a Florida State League All-Star in 2014. Following the season, he was assigned to the Mesa Solar Sox of the Arizona Fall League, where he played 11 games, hitting .262 with 5 RBI and 3 stolen bases.

For the 2015 season, Smith was invited to Major League spring training. He began the season assigned to the Double-A New Hampshire Fisher Cats, where he played 117 games, batting .265 with 7 home runs, 44 RBI, 122 hits, and 4 stolen bases. He was selected as an Eastern League All-Star. At the end of the 2015 season, Smith was not added to the Blue Jays' 40-man roster, making him eligible for the Rule 5 draft.

Smith received further invitations to Major League spring training in January 2016 and 2017. He opened the 2016 minor league season assigned to the Double-A New Hampshire Fisher Cats. In 126 games, he hit .265 with a career-high 15 home runs, 74 RBI, 125 hits, and 12 stolen bases. For the 2017 season, he was assigned to the Triple-A Buffalo Bisons.

On May 18, 2017, Smith was called up by the Blue Jays to replace the suspended Kevin Pillar and made his MLB debut on the same day against the Atlanta Braves, going 0-2 with a walk in Toronto's 9-0 victory. He was optioned back to Triple-A Buffalo on May 20. He was recalled on May 24 after Anthony Alford was placed on the disabled list, recording his first career MLB hit, a double off Wily Peralta, in the Blue Jays' 8-4 win over the Milwaukee Brewers that day, and was optioned back to Buffalo following the game. He was again recalled on June 14, replacing the injured Ezequiel Carrera, and recorded his first MLB RBI against the Chicago White Sox on June 17. He was recalled once more on September 4. In 2017, he appeared in 12 MLB games, batting .370 with 1 RBI, 10 hits, and 1 stolen base.

In 2018, Smith played in 35 MLB games, hitting .262 with 2 home runs and 8 RBI. On March 5, 2019, Smith was designated for assignment following the acquisition of Clay Buchholz.

3.2. Baltimore Orioles (2019-2020)

On March 9, 2019, Smith was traded to the Baltimore Orioles in exchange for international pool money. He began the season as the Orioles' starting left fielder. On May 31, Smith hit his first career grand slam off Drew Pomeranz, contributing to the Orioles' 9-6 victory over the San Francisco Giants. His season was shortened due to injury, limiting him to 101 games. He finished the season batting .241 with 13 home runs, 53 RBI, and 5 stolen bases.

In the 2020 season, Smith appeared in 21 games for the Orioles, hitting .222/.306/.365 with 6 RBI over 72 plate appearances. He was designated for assignment on August 22, 2020, and subsequently signed a minor league contract on August 27. He became a free agent on October 15, 2020.

3.3. Cincinnati Reds (2020-2021)

On December 7, 2020, Smith signed a minor league contract with the Cincinnati Reds organization and was invited to their 2021 spring training. He was assigned to the Triple-A Louisville Bats to begin the 2021 season. In 36 games for Louisville, Smith slashed .220/.327/.283 with 1 home run and 17 RBI. He was released by the Reds on June 20, 2021.

3.4. First Mexican League stint (2021)

On July 9, 2021, Smith signed with the Acereros de Monclova of the Mexican League. In 22 games, he recorded a batting line of .294/.362/.506 with 5 home runs, 14 RBIs, and 2 stolen bases.

3.5. Chicago White Sox (2022)

Smith signed a minor league contract with the Chicago White Sox on February 22, 2022. He played 13 games for the Triple-A Charlotte Knights, batting .236 with 1 home run and 5 RBI. He was released on May 7, 2022.

3.6. Second Mexican League stint (2022)

On May 25, 2022, Smith re-signed with the Acereros de Monclova of the Mexican League. However, his second stint was brief, as he was released on June 4, 2022. In 6 games, he went 3-for-17 (.177) with no home runs or RBIs.

3.7. Independent League (2022-2023)

On June 12, 2022, Smith signed with the Lexington Legends of the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball. In 12 games for Lexington, he batted .171/.292/.366 with 2 home runs and 7 RBI. He became a free agent after the season concluded.

On April 13, 2023, Smith signed with the Charleston Dirty Birds of the Atlantic League. In 120 games for Charleston, he had a strong performance, batting .331/.426/.569 with 22 home runs, 64 RBI, and 24 stolen bases. Following the season, Smith was named an Atlantic League All-Star.

Year	Team	G	PA	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	TB	RBI	SB	CS	BB	HBP	SO	SH	SF	GDP	AVG	OBP	SLG	OPS
2017	Toronto Blue Jays	12	29	27	2	10	2	0	0	12	1	1	0	1	0	1	0	0	0	.370	.414	.444	.858
2018	Toronto Blue Jays	35	75	65	9	17	8	0	2	31	8	0	0	7	0	2	0	1	2	.262	.347	.477	.824
2019	Baltimore Orioles	101	392	357	46	86	16	3	13	147	53	5	1	26	0	4	1	4	8	.241	.297	.412	.708
2020	Baltimore Orioles	21	72	63	9	14	3	0	2	23	6	1	0	7	1	1	0	1	1	.222	.306	.365	.671
MLB Total (4 years)		169	568	512	66	127	29	3	17	213	68	7	1	41	1	8	1	6	10	.248	.310	.416	.726

Year	Team	Left Field (LF)						Center Field (CF)						Right Field (RF)
Year	Team	G	PO	A	E	DP	FPct	G	PO	A	E	DP	FPct	G	PO	A	E	DP	FPct
2017	Toronto Blue Jays	9	2	0	0	0	1.000	1	1	0	0	0	1.000	1	0	0	0	0	----
2018	Toronto Blue Jays	19	25	0	0	0	1.000	-						6	11	1	0	0	1.000
2019	Baltimore Orioles	86	153	3	5	1	.969	-						-
2020	Baltimore Orioles	16	26	0	1	0	.963	-						-
MLB Total		130	206	3	6	1	.972	1	1	0	0	0	1.000	7	11	1	0	0	1.000

4.2. Honors and awards

Florida State League All-Star Game selection: 2014
Eastern League All-Star Game selection: 2015
Atlantic League All-Star selection: 2023

4.3. Uniform numbers

15 (Toronto Blue Jays: 2017)
27 (Toronto Blue Jays: 2018)
35 (Baltimore Orioles: 2019-2020)