The Red Sox have purchased the contract of right-hander Adam Smith from the Evansville Otters of the independent Frontier League, per an announcement from the club.
Smith had just signed with Evansville in early March, so his tenure there did not last too long. The 23-year-old righty is a former 2021 14th-round draft selection of the Padres out of UNC Wilmington who spent the first three seasons of his professional career with San Diego before being released in December.
As was the case in 2022, Smith spent the entirety of the 2023 campaign with the Padres’ High-A affiliate in Fort Wayne, Ind. In 30 appearances for the TinCaps, Smith posted a 5.83 ERA and 4.49 FIP with 35 strikeouts to 21 walks over 41 2/3 innings of relief.
A native of West Chester, Pa., Smith spent his offseason working out at Ascent Athlete, a facility in nearby Garnet Valley. While there, “he made some changes to get to a more natural delivery and improve on his pitch shapes. Dropping his arm slot allowed him to unlock a whole new approach to pitching.”
According to a recent Instagram post from Ascent Athlete, Smith averaged 93.6 mph and topped out at 96.1 mph with his fastball. The 6-foot-2, 180-pound hurler also developed an “elite sweeper with some insane movement” and a changeup that “plays as a second out pitch” to both left- and right-handed hitters.
Smith, who turns 24 next month, has been assigned to High-A Greenville and will presumably contribute out of the bullpen for the Drive. With that, it should be interesting to see how he fares with a revamped pitch mix in his return to affiliated ball.
