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Los Angeles Dodgers catcher Will Smith is putting together an impressive performance at the plate in 2025.
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Smith is hitting .325 with a National League-leading .424 on-base percentage and a .949 OPS. With runners in scoring position, Smith is hitting .433 with 36 runs batted in.
Manager Dave Roberts doesn’t think the 30-year-old will slow down in the second half of the season thanks to rookie backstop Dalton Rushing, who has provided Smith with more days off in his new role as backup.
“I’m pretty confident, and I just got to make sure I remain steadfast in kind of using Dalton and giving Will days,” Roberts said. “There’s been some injuries that he’s dealt with, but I do think that if we can kind of keep his legs in line, sharp and fresh, I think this – the performance is sustainable.”
Last season, Smith’s performance after the All-Star break declined largely in part to a bone bruise he sustained during a June series against the New York Yankees.
Prior to the injury, Smith hit .291 with an .856 OPS and nine home runs in the first 54 games he played in 2024. Playing with the bone bruise, he hit .215 with a .687 OPS and hit just five home runs after the All-Star break.
Roberts doesn’t believe 2025 will unfold similarly for Smith.
“I think he’s fresh, he’s healthy,” Roberts said. “He’s obviously getting to a lot of balls, specifically the heater that he wasn’t in the last couple years, certainly at the end of both seasons. I think he’s just, he’s healthy, he’s a perennial All-Star.
“Not that he lacked for confidence, but he’s just, he’s just really, you know, body and mind, in a good spot.”
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Photo Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images
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