I was eager to see top prospect Dominic Smith during the current Binghamton Mets home stand. It was my first look at the kid and he certainly passed the eye test.
The return of more winter weather to upstate New York and the fact that I’m coaching a high school baseball team, delayed my first visit to Binghamton’s NYSEG Stadium. That made me chomping at the bit to finally see the team on their current homestead.
My curiosity was high to finally get a look at Dominic Smith, the Mets number one pick in the 2013 draft out of Junipero Sierra High School in Gardena, California. I had read a good deal on MetsMerized about Smith, but was surprised to discover just how big the 20-year old first baseman really is. This kid is huge, a wide-bodied force in the batter’s box.
Smith didn’t disappoint. Over my first four trips at the park, Smith smacked a total of 8 hits. The kid entered the homestead batting a paltry .174. His two-hit effort in Wednesday night’s 3-2 B-Met victory had boosted his batting average 92 points over the last six games to a more respectable .266 with more room to grow.
Smith has a short, compact swing and laces the ball to all fields. The kid has hit well in the clutch knocking home seven runs in the first six games of the home stand, the last ribby a game winner in last night’s victory.
Driving in runs is not uncommon for Smith. The big first baseman led the entire Mets minor league system with 79 runs batted in last season playing in only 118 games for Single-A St. Lucie. He posted an impressive slash line of .305/.354/.417 and was named the MVP of the Florida State League. Smith continued his offensive onslaught in the Arizona Fall League batting .362/.483/.511.
Although Smith has not yet shown the home run pop many expected, he did lead the Florida State League with 33 doubles last season, and I’m sure many of those will eventually translate into home runs as he fills out.
Some say “first impressions are lasting.” If that’s the case, I’m going to enjoy watching Dom Smith wearing orange and blue for a long, long time.
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