Will Smith
C LAD
Sat 4/6/24 9:54 AM

Smith went 4-for-5 with a double, a run and an RBI in Friday's loss to the Cubs.
EDGE Analysis
Smith continues to hit the ball well early in the campaign, as he's slashing .459/.488/.568 through 41 plate appearances. Though he's yet to go deep, the All-Star catcher has collected four doubles and eight RBI. Smith and teammate Mookie Betts are tied for the MLB lead with 17 hits.

Will Smith
C LAD
Sun 3/31/24 3:24 PM

Smith is out of the lineup for Sunday's game versus the Cardinals.
EDGE Analysis
Smith has at least one hit in each of the first five games of the season and is coming off a three-hit performance Saturday, but he'll receive a breather in the series finale against St. Louis. Austin Barnes will step in behind the plate and bat ninth Sunday.

Will Smith
C LAD
Sun 3/31/24 10:23 AM

Smith went 3-for-5 with two RBI in Saturday's extra-inning loss to St. Louis.
EDGE Analysis
Smith came through twice in run-scoring opportunities, knocking in a run with a single in the fifth inning and repeating the feat in the seventh. The All-Star catcher is off to a nice start to the campaign, collecting at least one hit in each of his first five games and slashing .455/.500/.545 with four RBI through 22 plate appearances. He's yet to sit out a contest and should have plenty of opportunities to produce this season while batting cleanup behind Mookie Betts, Shohei Ohtani and Freddie Freeman.

Will Smith
C LAD
Wed 3/27/24 2:36 PM

Smith agreed Wednesday with the Dodgers on a 10-year, $140 million contract extension, Jeff Passan of ESPN.com reports.
EDGE Analysis
Smith had been eligible for free agency after the 2025 season, but the extension -- the longest for a catcher in MLB history -- will keep him in Dodger blue through his age-38 campaign in 2033. Since posting a career-best .980 OPS in the pandemic-shortened 2020 season, Smith's OPS has dropped in each of the last three seasons, but his .797 mark in 2023 was still good for fifth among all backstops who logged at least 400 plate appearances. The 29-year-old got off to a strong start to the regular season during last week's Seoul Series, going 5-for-10 with a double, a walk, two RBI and one run in the Dodgers' two games versus the Padres. Smith occupied the cleanup spot in both of those contests, and if health prevails in 2024, he should have a prime opportunity to surpass his previous career high of 87 RBI while hitting behind the likes of Mookie Betts, Shohei Ohtani and Freddie Freeman.

Will Smith
C LAD
Thu 3/21/24 1:14 PM

Smith went 4-for-6 with a double, a run and two RBI in Thursday's loss to the Padres in the second game of the Seoul Series.
EDGE Analysis
After the Padres went ahead 5-0 in the top of the first inning, Smith put the Dodgers on the board with an RBI double in the bottom of the frame. He collected three singles the rest of the way -- including an RBI base knock in the seventh -- as he and Mookie Betts combined for half of the Dodgers' 16 total hits. Smith went 5-for-10 over the two-game, season-opening set in South Korea and appears to be fully recovered from the back issue that caused him to be scratched from Los Angeles' final Cactus League game March 13.

Will Smith
C LAD
Mon 3/18/24 7:58 AM

Smith (back) started at catcher and went 1-for-2 with a two-run double against Team Korea on Monday.
EDGE Analysis
He had recently been scratched from a Cactus League game as a precaution due to back tightness, but since he was able to start this exhibition in South Korea, it seems like it was a minor issue. Smith should play in the Seoul Series against the Padres later this week.

Will Smith
C LAD
Wed 3/13/24 3:27 PM

Smith was scratched from the lineup Wednesday for the Dodgers' Cactus League game against the Mariners due to low-back tightness, Bill Plunkett of The Orange County Register reports.
EDGE Analysis
Smith should be fine to play a week from now, when the Dodgers take on the Padres for the first of two games in Seoul, South Korea to kick off their regular season. The Dodgers felt no need to push Smith to play in their final Cactus League game, so Austin Barnes will handle catching duties Wednesday.

Will Smith
C LAD
Wed 2/21/24 4:45 PM

Smith told Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic this week that he and his representation have not had any contract extension talks with the Dodgers.
EDGE Analysis
Smith is set to earn $8.55 million in 2024 and will be arbitration eligible once more in 2025 before reaching free agency. It's not clear whether the team intends to eventually engage with Smith regarding a long-term deal, but at the moment it doesn't seem to be a priority. The Dodgers do have Dalton Rushing, Diego Cartaya and Thayron Liranzo in the minors, but Cartaya is coming off a disappointing season and Rushing and Liranzo might not be ready to take over after 2025.

Will Smith
C LAD
Thu 1/11/24 8:42 PM

Smith signed a one-year, $8.6 million deal with the Dodgers on Thursday to avoid arbitration, Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic reports.
EDGE Analysis
Smith is in the second year of arbitration eligibility and will earn $3.3 million more than he did in 2023. He posted a career-low .797 OPS across 554 plate appearances last season, though he's still an above-average producer at catcher.

Will Smith
C LAD
Sat 9/30/23 6:22 PM

Smith will be on the bench Saturday against the Giants.
EDGE Analysis
Smith sits for the second time in three days, with the Dodgers seemingly prioritizing rest in the final week of the regular season. He's one homer shy of his third straight 20-homer campaign but will have to wait until the final game of the season to try for it, unless he appears as a pinch hitter Saturday. Austin Barnes will start behind the plate in Smith's absence, catching for Clayton Kershaw.