TORONTO – Rare are instant-fix panaceas for players struggling to reach their full potential, and the move alone from offence-draining Safeco Field to the hitters’ haven that is Rogers Centre won’t be a miracle cure-all for Justin Smoak.
But perhaps – in combination with being freed from the pressures of living up to his once top-prospect status, and being the centrepiece of the Seattle Mariners’ return from the Texas Rangers for Cliff Lee – moving to a ballpark more agreeable to his fly-ball game could help unlock his ample talent.
“I’ve always been a guy that’s able hit the ball in the air and when you hit the ball in the air in Seattle, not too often does it go out of the ballpark and get in the gaps,” Smoak, recently claimed by the Toronto Blue Jays on waivers, said during a conference call Wednesday. “It’s something that’s going to be a change.
“It’s more of a confidence thing, too. You play in the AL East, all those are pretty much hitters’ ballparks and I think it’s a confidence standpoint, knowing when you go to the plate you expect good things to happen.”
Tuesday’s pickup of Smoak – the Mariners were going to outright him off the 40-man roster had he not been claimed – has led to speculation that the Blue Jays are planning to part ways with Adam Lind, who has a $7.5 million option in 2015. At this point, that’s jumping to conclusions, but clearly Smoak gives GM Alex Anthopoulos some protection should a worthwhile deal for Lind present itself.
Drafted 11th overall by the Rangers in 2008 and dealt in 2010 to the Mariners as part of the Lee blockbuster, Smoak arrived in Seattle with a huge pedigree and proceeded to largely disappoint, although his 1.4 WAR season in 2013 suggested he may yet tap into his physical gifts.
He hit 15, 19 and 20 homers from 2011-13, but his performance completely collapsed in 2014, which was marred in part by a quad injury that landed him on the disabled list. There are some who feel chasing the long-ball pulled him from the gaps and walks approach that served him so well at the University of South Carolina and in the minors, one reason why the dome could make a difference.
“Sometimes you get in trouble trying hit the ball as far as you can hit it, or trying to do too much in certain situations instead of just knowing you put a good swing or make good contact it’s going to go,” said Smoak. “There are no excuses over the last couple of years about what’s gone on in Seattle, but I figure a change of scenery is going to be good and I’m excited for the opportunity.”
Smoak has a $3.65 million option for 2015 but the Blue Jays will buy that out for $150,000, retain his arbitration rights and try to negotiate a new contract with him. Assistant GM Andrew Tinnish spoke with him after Tuesday’s waiver claim and was vague on details but eager to get him.
“He said it was early in the off-season and they’re still trying to figure out what they want to do,” relayed Smoak. “At the same time, it’s a good opportunity for me. It’s pretty exciting for me and my family and it’ll be nice to get back on the East Coast being an East Coast guy. He had some good things to say and what he thought being in a hitters’ ballpark for me and what I’ve done in the past could do. I’m ready to go.”
Smoak slashed .202/.275/.339 in 80 games for the Mariners last year, watching a good start to the year come undone after tweaking his quad in May and playing through the injury into June. He missed a month and returned to the Mariners briefly before being optioned to triple-A, only to return in September for 12 at-bats.
By then it was clear the sides were headed for a divorce.
How badly did the injury derail him?
“That was the first time I tried to play through a pretty bad injury and I let it linger longer than I should have,” Smoak said. “I played through it for probably three weeks and once I blew it out I couldn’t do anything. It is what it is, you play 162 games, you try to play through little pains here and there. I probably pushed it to the point of no return but that’s a learning process for me, and I know what I need to do now to try and play 162.”
All that’s history and it seems clear that he’ll get some sort of opportunity with the Blue Jays, the details of which won’t be known until the rest of the off-season plays out.
Either way, he’s happy for the change.
“No doubt,” said Smoak. “There’ve been some good times in Seattle and some bad times, but you learn from it and it will be good to be in a hitter’s ballpark and we’ll be positive about that. I’m just excited to get this thing started.”