Will Smith
35-Year-Old
Free Agent
Out
Injury Back
Est. Return 2/1/2025
2024 Stats
W-L
0-4
ERA
6.53
WHIP
1.45
K
29
SV
1
Rest-of-Season Projections
2024 Fantasy Outlook
Smith, who made his MLB debut with Kansas City back in 2012, will return to the organization more than a decade later after recently signing a 1-year, $5 million contract with the Royals. The veteran left-hander earned 22 saves for the Rangers last season and has 113 for his career, but really struggled over the final two months (7.45 ERA, 1.50 WHIP), eventually ceding closing duties in mid-August. He now joins a crowded late-inning mix and could be part of a closer committee in 2024 despite having the most experience in the 9th inning. Read Past Outlooks
Throwing, but timeline uncertain
Smith recently resumed throwing bullpen sessions, but he's still experiencing back tightness and is without a clear timeline for a return from the 15-day injured list, MLB.com reports.
ANALYSIS
Smith had been contending with back issues for several weeks before the Royals placed him on the IL on Aug. 26. Though it's encouraging that Smith hasn't been shut down from throwing, he'll likely need the soreness in his back to subside a bit more before the Royals are comfortable bringing him back. It's unclear if Smith has a legitimate chance at being activated before the regular season ends Sept. 29.
Smith had been contending with back issues for several weeks before the Royals placed him on the IL on Aug. 26. Though it's encouraging that Smith hasn't been shut down from throwing, he'll likely need the soreness in his back to subside a bit more before the Royals are comfortable bringing him back. It's unclear if Smith has a legitimate chance at being activated before the regular season ends Sept. 29.
Pitching Stats
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2024
2023
2022
2021
2020
2019
2018
2017
Minor League Game Log
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Pitching Appearances Breakdown
Average Pitch Count
15
Last 10 Games
16
Last 5 Games
20
How many pitches does Will Smith generally throw?
1-10
11-20
21-30
31-40
41-50
51-60
61-70
71-80
81-90
91-100
101-110
111-120
121+
What part of the game does Will Smith generally pitch?
1st
2nd
3rd
4th
5th
6th
7th
8th
9th
Extra
% Games Reaching Innings Threshold
% Games By Number of Innings Pitched
Left/Right Pitching Splits
Since 2022
-16%
BAA vs LHP
2024
-21%
BAA vs LHP
BAA | K | BB | H | HR | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Since 2022vs Left | .217 | 65 | 11 | 50 | 5 | |||
Since 2022vs Right | .259 | 84 | 46 | 97 | 16 | |||
2024vs Left | .235 | 16 | 2 | 16 | 2 | |||
2024vs Right | .299 | 13 | 13 | 29 | 5 | |||
2023vs Left | .177 | 19 | 4 | 11 | 1 | |||
2023vs Right | .224 | 36 | 13 | 33 | 4 | |||
2022vs Left | .230 | 30 | 5 | 23 | 2 | |||
2022vs Right | .267 | 35 | 20 | 35 | 7 | |||
More Splits→ | View More Split Stats |
Home/Away Pitching Splits
Since 2022
-25%
ERA on Road
2024
-65%
ERA on Road
ERA | WHIP | IP | K/9 | BB/9 | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Since 2022Home | 5.42 | 1.40 | 86.1 | 8.2 | 2.7 | ||||
Since 2022Away | 4.04 | 1.16 | 71.1 | 8.8 | 3.9 | ||||
2024Home | 9.41 | 1.68 | 22.0 | 5.3 | 3.7 | ||||
2024Away | 3.26 | 1.19 | 19.1 | 7.4 | 2.8 | ||||
2023Home | 4.50 | 1.13 | 30.0 | 7.8 | 2.1 | ||||
2023Away | 4.28 | 0.99 | 27.1 | 9.5 | 3.3 | ||||
2022Home | 3.67 | 1.46 | 34.1 | 10.5 | 2.6 | ||||
2022Away | 4.38 | 1.34 | 24.2 | 9.1 | 5.5 | ||||
More Splits→ | View More Split Stats |
Stat Review
How does Will Smith compare to other relievers?
This section compares his stats with all relief pitcher seasons from the previous three seasons (minimum 30 innings)*. The bar represents the player's percentile rank. For example, if the bar is halfway across, then the player falls into the 50th percentile for that stat and it would be considered average.
* Exit Velocity, Barrels/BBE %, Balls Hit 95+ MPH %, and Spin Rate are benchmarked against 2019 data (min 30 IP). See here for more exit velocity/barrels stats plus an explanation of current limitations with that data set.
* Exit Velocity, Barrels/BBE %, Balls Hit 95+ MPH %, and Spin Rate are benchmarked against 2019 data (min 30 IP). See here for more exit velocity/barrels stats plus an explanation of current limitations with that data set.
K/BB
1.93K/9
6.3BB/9
3.3HR/9
1.5Fastball
91.3 mphERA
6.53WHIP
1.45BABIP
.303GB/FB
0.75Left On Base
57.8%Exit Velocity
82.2 mphBarrels/BBE
5.5%Spin Rate
2247 rpmBalls Hit 95+ MPH
22.0%Swinging Strike
10.4%Advanced Pitching Stats
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Defensive Stats
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Stats Vs Today's Lineup
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Recent RotoWire Articles Featuring Will Smith See More
With the splits in his favor versus Jack Flaherty, Anthony Rizzo makes for a contrarian option for Friday FanDuel MLB DFS contests.
Thursday's top MLB DFA picks on FanDuel include Aaron Judge, who could be ready to get going against left Matthew Boyd and the Guardians.
Mark Vientos has been on a tear in the 2024 MLB playoffs, hitting three home runs and two doubles with 11 RBI. He's a top target for Thursday DraftKings MLB DFS contests.
Past Fantasy Outlooks
2023
2022
2021
2020
2019
2018
2017
2016
2015
2014
2013
2010
After coming over in a trade from Atlanta on Aug. 1, Smith proceeded to make 24 relief appearances for Houston during the regular season, compiling a 3.27 ERA, 1.23 WHIP and six holds in 22 innings. Overall he had a 3.97 ERA, 1.41 WHIP and five saves over 65 appearances, though a declining strikeout rate (to 9.92 K/9 - the worst since his rookie season) is a concern. Smith surpassed 30 saves in 2019 and 2021 with San Francisco and Atlanta, respectively, so he could be in the mix to close in Texas despite signing with the Rangers late in the spring.
More Fantasy News
Placed on IL with back spasms
The Royals placed Smith on the 15-day injured list Monday with low back spasms.
ANALYSIS
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Handed loss Friday
Smith (0-4) allowed two runs on a hit and a walk over one-third of an inning, taking the loss Friday versus the Cardinals.
ANALYSIS
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Takes third loss
Smith (0-3) allowed an unearned run on two hits and struck out one in one-third of an inning to take the loss Friday versus the Dodgers.
ANALYSIS
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Handling low-leverage role well
Smith has allowed two runs over nine innings since the start of May.
ANALYSIS
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Pulled from save situation
Smith was removed from a save situation Friday against the White Sox. He allowed one hit and one walk while striking out one batter in one-third of an inning.
ANALYSIS
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Latest Fantasy Rumors
Royals want to trade for closer
The Royals would prefer to trade for a closer and shift Smith to a setup role, Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic reports.
ANALYSIS
Rosenthal implies doubt that the Royals will be able to pull it off, however, viewing Devin Williams or Emmanuel Clase as unlikely trade matches and Kenley Jansen's $16 million salary prohibitive. Still, it's noteworthy for those participating in early fantasy drafts when considering Smith as a potential source for saves.
Rosenthal implies doubt that the Royals will be able to pull it off, however, viewing Devin Williams or Emmanuel Clase as unlikely trade matches and Kenley Jansen's $16 million salary prohibitive. Still, it's noteworthy for those participating in early fantasy drafts when considering Smith as a potential source for saves.