Reggie Smith facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Reggie Smith |
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Smith with the Boston Red Sox in 1969
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| Outfielder | |||
| Born: April 2, 1945 Shreveport, Louisiana, U.S. |
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| debut | |||
| September 18, 1966, for the Boston Red Sox | |||
| Last appearance | |||
| October 3, 1982, for the San Francisco Giants | |||
| MLB statistics | |||
| Batting average | .287 | ||
| Hits | 2,020 | ||
| Home runs | 314 | ||
| Runs batted in | 1,092 | ||
| Teams | |||
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| Career highlights and awards | |||
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Carl Reginald Smith (born April 2, 1945) is a former professional baseball player from America. He played as an outfielder in Major League Baseball (MLB). After his playing days, he became a coach and worked in team management.
Reggie Smith also played baseball in Japan for two seasons. His MLB career lasted 17 years, from 1966 to 1982. During this time, he played in almost 2,000 games. He hit 314 home runs and had 1,092 RBIs. His batting average was .287.
Reggie was a switch-hitter, meaning he could bat from both the left and right sides. He threw the ball with his right hand. He was known for having one of the strongest throwing arms among outfielders. His teams had a winning record in every season where he played at least 70 games.
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Playing Career Highlights
Reggie Smith grew up in Los Angeles, California. He went to Centennial High School in Compton. In 1966, he won the batting title in the International League. He played for the Toronto Maple Leafs and had a .320 batting average.
Later that year, he joined the MLB. He played for several famous teams. These included the Boston Red Sox (1966–1973), St. Louis Cardinals (1974–1976), Los Angeles Dodgers (1976–1981), and San Francisco Giants (1982).
World Series Appearances
Reggie Smith played in four World Series. His first World Series was in 1967 with the Red Sox. He also played in three World Series with the Dodgers. These were in 1977, 1978, and 1981. In the 1977 World Series, he hit three home runs.
Team Trades
Reggie Smith moved between teams during his career. On October 26, 1973, he was traded from the Red Sox. He went to the St. Louis Cardinals along with Ken Tatum. In return, the Red Sox received Bernie Carbo and Rick Wise.
Later, on June 15, 1976, Smith was traded again. He joined the Los Angeles Dodgers. The Cardinals received Bob Detherage, Joe Ferguson, and Freddie Tisdale.
Playing in Japan
After playing for the San Francisco Giants, Reggie Smith moved to Japan. He played for the Yomiuri Giants in the Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB). He earned a high salary and was given three cars. Reggie was a strong hitter for the Giants for two seasons. He found the baseball traditions in Japan to be very different from those in America.
Career Statistics
Reggie Smith played in 1,987 games over 17 seasons in Major League Baseball. He had a batting average of .287. This means he got a hit almost 29% of the times he tried to hit the ball.
He had 2,020 hits in total. He scored 1,123 runs for his teams. He also hit 363 doubles and 57 triples. Reggie hit 314 home runs and brought in 1,092 RBIs. He also stole 137 stolen bases.
His on-base percentage was .366. This shows how often he got on base. His slugging percentage was .489, which measures his power. He had a strong fielding percentage of .978. In 32 playoff and World Series games, he hit .234. He also hit 6 home runs and had 17 RBIs in these important games.
Coaching Career
After he stopped playing, Reggie Smith returned to the Dodgers. He worked as a coach for manager Tommy Lasorda. He also taught players in the minor leagues and helped with player development.
USA Baseball Coach
Reggie Smith started working with USA Baseball in 1999. He was the hitting coach for the professional team. They won a silver medal at the Pan American Games in Winnipeg. He was also the hitting coach for the US team at the 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney, Australia. There, the US team won a gold medal!
He continued to coach for USA Baseball. He was the hitting coach for the 2007 IBAF Baseball World Cup in Taiwan, where they won gold. He also coached in the 2006 World Baseball Classic. In 2008, he was the hitting coach for the Bronze medal-winning US Olympic team in Beijing.
Baseball Academy
Reggie Smith runs his own baseball academy. It is located in Encino, California. He trains young players there. Some of his students have become professional players, like Max Fried and Austin Wilson. In 2021, he helped coach the National League All-Stars. He was part of Dave Roberts' coaching staff.
Personal Life
Reggie Smith has many interesting hobbies. He has a pilot's license, which means he can fly airplanes. He is also very musical. He can play seven different musical instruments!
See also
- List of Major League Baseball career home run leaders
- List of Major League Baseball career hits leaders
- List of Major League Baseball career runs scored leaders
- List of Major League Baseball career runs batted in leaders
- List of Major League Baseball annual doubles leaders
