Trade, Keep, Build: 3 Texas Rangers players with 3 different outcomes

3 Texas Rangers players to trade, keep or build

Build: Josh H. Smith

This isn’t a recency-bias statement, either. Sam Huff, Jonah Heim, Dane Dunning, and Glen Otto are all candidates who are deserving of this title (so far) but I’m sticking with the newbie.

Smith, who recently made his MLB debut, has taken Texas Rangers fans by storm. He reached base safely 10 times in his first five games. Five hits, three HBPs, and two walks with only one strikeout in 17 plate appearances will have people excited after all. This is about more than just his stellar start to his professional career though: Josh Smith is a professional hitter.

In college, he slashed .313/.420/.478 with 16 home runs over three years at LSU. He continued his success in the minors where he’s hit .302/.420/.491 with 20 home runs in 151 games across all 4 minor league levels.

The 2019 second-round draft selection has also passed the eye test. His pitch tracking, pitch discipline, and ball to bat all seem ready to handle big-league pitching. After being hypothesized to be a key piece in a trade for pitching, it’s seeming more likely he’ll stick around. The problem would be where do you play him? Third base is still earmarked for Josh Jung, second base and shortstop are spoken for as well.

Smith recently got playing time in center field at AAA Round Rock, but would better be suited for left field. Still, he doesn’t fit the profile of a full-time outfielder. Dare I evoke the name of Michael Young? No, this is not a player comparison but more of a type of utilization. Even when the Texas Rangers had Adrian Beltre at 3B, Elvis Andrus at SS, and Ian Kinsler at 2B, they still found a way to get Young in the lineup consistently.

That’s going to be the likely approach for Smith, as he’s shown that moving around won’t affect his plate approach much.