DUNEDIN, Fla. – Twice this spring Jose Reyes knew as soon as the relay to first base left his fingertips. "I said to myself, ‘Ugh, that’s going to be in the stands,’" the Toronto Blue Jays shortstop recalls, "and he catches the ball without a jump."
The "he" Reyes is talking about is Justin Smoak, and a six-foot-four frame with a massive wingspan is an important part of what he brings to the table. While manager John Gibbons said before a 4-2 loss to the Baltimore Orioles on Sunday that the situation at first base "is still a little bit cluttered," the 28-year-old is expected to be on the club’s initial 25-man roster due to be unveiled Tuesday.
Ultimately, what Smoak does at the plate will determine the type of opportunity he gets with the Blue Jays this season, but his defence and its ancillary benefits are elements that only help his case.
"That’s huge for infielders," says Reyes, "because with a small first baseman, you have to focus on throwing low or hitting him in the chest all the time. A big first baseman you don’t have to worry because he covers a lot more territory there."
The extra bit of coverage is one of those little things that can really add up over the course of 162 games.
Sportsnet Magazine’s MLB Preview:
Why the Blue Jays went all in with Russell Martin, and answers to the 12 questions that will define the baseball season. Download it right now on your iOS
or Android device, free to Sportsnet ONE subscribers.
Consider that last year, the Blue Jays were 25th in Defensive Runs Saved, a measure that rates players as above or below average, at first base with a score of minus-8, and were 28th in 2013 at minus-15. Add in that Reyes made 11 throwing errors last season while Josh Donaldson made 17, and Smoak’s reach and ability to pick balls out of the dirt can really make a difference. Some estimates are that he would have prevented 75 percent of those throwing errors.
"A lot of guys don’t really give too much credit to defence over there because they feel like you’re a big guy who can just hit," says Smoak. "I’ve always put a lot of pride into that. You’re in on the majority of plays. Normally all you’ve got to do is catch the ball, but some of those guys don’t know where it’s going."
Extra outs are never a good thing but avoiding them will be all the more important this year given how young the Blue Jays rotation and bullpen will be. For all the talk about nurturing and supporting them, the best support their young pitchers can get is a defence that catches the ball behind them.
At the same time, offence matters, and part of the Blue Jays’ upside play with Smoak is a belief that pulling him out of Seattle, where expectations for him were high as the key piece the Mariners obtained from Texas for Cliff Lee, combined with a few adjustments might unlock the 2008 first-rounder’s potential.
"I just felt, I don’t want to say pressure, but coming up, first basemen in the big-leagues, that’s what they do, hit homers. I put that expectation on myself," says Smoak. "Coming out of college everyone thought I was a power hitter, and I’ve never really been that kind of guy, I’ve always been a guy that hit a lot of doubles and every now and then hit some homers.
"That’s something I’m trying to get back to. I’ve hit 20 homers in the big-leagues before and didn’t have a good year. If I’m able to play enough and get some at-bats, good things can happen."
Over the past week and a half he’s shown signs of turning the corner, going 6-for-17 with a double, three homers and four walks. More importantly, he believes the adjustments he’s been working on – including moving his hands back so he can get into his swing quicker – are beginning to pay off.
"I was in between trying to get my hands in position, I wasn’t really getting them where I wanted them to be to fire," Smoak says of his slow start. "I wasn’t able to swing the bat, I was getting caught in between. I moved them back a little bit, and now it’s see the ball, hit the ball. …
"Leaving spring training knowing what I’ve worked on the first few weeks to get where I am now," he adds, "I feel a lot better."
Smoak’s defence, meanwhile, has looked sharp all spring.
On Sunday, Jeff Francis picked off Rey Navarro at first and after a couple of throws back and forth, Smoak pinpointed a laser to Jonathan Diaz for the tag at second. Had the throw been up even a little, Navarro would have slid in safely.
"When you get into coaching, especially in the minor leagues, if a guy can hit but he has no position, they always say play him at first," says Gibbons. "But they handle the ball more than anybody, so if you don’t have a good one over there, it costs you, it can really cost you. I’m not necessarily talking range and the balls they field – flagging down throws, picking out short hops, they save their teammates errors and it can add up on you. A lot of time those guys get taken for granted, the real good ones over there, but when they’re not in there you miss them."
Smoak gives the Blue Jays an opportunity to have that type of first baseman. Now they need him to hit enough to stay there.