Dwight Smith Jr. facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Dwight Smith Jr. |
|||
|---|---|---|---|
Smith with the Baltimore Orioles in 2019
|
|||
| Charros de Jalisco – No. 7 | |||
| Outfielder | |||
| Born: October 26, 1992 Peachtree City, Georgia, U.S. |
|||
|
|||
| debut | |||
| May 18, 2017, for the Toronto Blue Jays | |||
| MLB statistics (through 2020 season) |
|||
| Batting average | .254 | ||
| Home runs | 17 | ||
| Runs batted in | 67 | ||
| Teams | |||
|
|||
John Dwight Smith Jr. (born October 26, 1992) is an American professional baseball player. He plays as an outfielder for the Charros de Jalisco team in the Mexican League. Before this, he played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Toronto Blue Jays and Baltimore Orioles.
Contents
About Dwight Smith Jr.
Dwight Smith Jr. comes from a baseball family. His father, also named Dwight Smith, was also a professional baseball player in the MLB.
Dwight's Baseball Journey
Starting with the Blue Jays
Dwight Smith Jr. went to McIntosh High School. After high school, the Toronto Blue Jays picked him in the 2011 Major League Baseball draft. He was the 53rd player chosen overall.
He started his professional career in 2012. He played for two different minor league teams that year. He hit a combined .212 with 4 home runs and 29 runs batted in (RBI). In 2013, he played for the Lansing Lugnuts. He had a good season, hitting .284 in 109 games. He also hit 7 home runs, had 46 RBI, and stole 25 bases.
In 2014, Dwight moved up to the Dunedin Blue Jays. On April 6, 2014, he hit two home runs in one game. This was the first time he had done that in his career. He finished the 2014 season with a .284 batting average. He hit 12 home runs and had 60 RBI. He also stole 15 bases. The Blue Jays organization chose him to play in the Arizona Fall League after the season. He was named the Most Valuable Player (MVP) for the Dunedin team in 2014.
Dwight was promoted again in 2015 to the New Hampshire Fisher Cats. He played the whole season there. He batted .265 with 7 home runs and 44 RBI in 117 games.
In 2016, Dwight played another season for the Fisher Cats. He hit .265 again, but he had a career-high 15 home runs. He also had 74 RBI that year. For the start of the 2017 season, he moved up to the Buffalo Bisons. This was a Triple-A team, just one step below the MLB.
Making His MLB Debut
On May 18, 2017, Dwight Smith Jr. was called up to the Toronto Blue Jays. This meant he would play in Major League Baseball for the first time! He made his debut on the same day against the Atlanta Braves. He got his first career hit a few days later, on May 24, against the Milwaukee Brewers.
On March 5, 2019, the Blue Jays decided to make Dwight available to other teams.
Playing for the Orioles
On March 9, 2019, Dwight was traded to the Baltimore Orioles. He became the starting left fielder for the team. On May 31, he hit his first career grand slam. This is when a player hits a home run with the bases loaded, scoring four runs! The Orioles won that game 9–6 against the San Francisco Giants.
Dwight played in 101 games for the Orioles in 2019. He finished the season hitting .241 with 13 home runs and 53 RBI. In 2020, he played in 21 games for the Orioles. He hit .222 with six RBI. On August 22, 2020, the Orioles decided to make him available to other teams again. He became a free agent on November 2.
Other Teams and Leagues
After leaving the Orioles, Dwight signed a minor league contract with the Cincinnati Reds in December 2020. He played for their Triple-A team, the Louisville Bats, in 2021. He hit 1 home run and had 17 RBI in 36 games before leaving the team.
In July 2021, Dwight joined the Acereros de Monclova in the Mexican League. He played well there, hitting .294 with 5 home runs and 14 RBI in 22 games.
He then signed with the Chicago White Sox in February 2022 but was released in May. He briefly returned to the Acereros de Monclova in May 2022 but left in June.
In June 2022, Dwight signed with the Lexington Legends in the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball. He played 12 games there.
In April 2023, he joined the Charleston Dirty Birds, also in the Atlantic League. He had a great season, playing in 120 games. He batted .331 with 22 home runs, 64 RBI, and 24 stolen bases. He was named an Atlantic League All–Star for his excellent performance.
Most recently, on February 19, 2024, Dwight Smith Jr. signed with the Charros de Jalisco in the Mexican League. In 79 games, he batted .302 with 11 home runs, 41 RBI, and 10 stolen bases.
Images for kids
-
Dwight Smith Jr. playing for the Baltimore Orioles.
