Los Angeles Dodgers All-Star catcher Will Smith moved down to fifth in the Dodgers' lineup for Game 2 of the NLCS amid his 1-for-19 stretch this October. Smith, ordinarily one of the Dodgers' offensive catalysts, hasn't found much success in the postseason so far, with his sole hit — a single — coming against the Atlanta Braves in Game 3 of the NLDS. Prior to Monday's Game 2 matchup, Smith hadn't batted lower than fourth in the Dodgers' order.
He has seven strikeouts on the postseason, walking just once, and has provided limited value to the offense despite his pedigree. Smith missed a couple of months of the regular season due to a neck injury, and didn't perform up to his usual standards when healthy, either. He hit 10 homers and drove in 34 runs in 73 games this year, posting a .781 OPS — below his career average of .829 and his .901 mark from last season by a wide margin.
Despite Smith's dip in production, he had fairly similar quality of contact numbers across the board and even managed to improve in areas like whiff and strikeout rate. His fairly consistent numbers indicate he has been slightly unlucky in 2026, and nothing highlighted that fact more than Game 1 of the NLCS against the Milwaukee Brewers on Sunday. Smith went 0-for-3 with a walk, flying out twice and grounding into a double play in the top of the first.
Despite the results of his three batted balls from Game 1, Smith showed some encouraging signs. He hit each of those three balls with an exit velocity higher than 95 mph, and was the only player in the game to record more than two at that speed or higher. The Dodgers clearly still have faith in the catcher as well, as he remains in the lineup for the second game of the series and didn't fall too far from his prior spot.
Now facing a 1-0 deficit in the NLCS, Smith will look to break out of his slump in the second game of the series, which begins Monday at 2:00 p.m.
Extract — continue reading at the source.
