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New York Times
6 days ago
- Sport
- New York Times
Astros rookie Cam Smith now takes the later bus to games — and it could shape his career
PHOENIX — Three buses transport the Houston Astros to and from every road ballpark, a transit system based on service time and pregame schedules. Veterans have seats on the final shuttles. Manager Joe Espada, his coaching staff and some rookies ride the first bus, which sometimes departs six hours before first pitch. Advertisement At the beginning of his big league career, Cam Smith never missed the first bus. He is a precisionist with a meticulous pregame routine, but also cognizant of his place within the clubhouse hierarchy. Earlier this month, Smith said he prioritizes being in the batting cage 'before the veteran guys start to step in.' Smith's respect for the sport's status quo is admirable, one of the myriad reasons a man with just 32 games of minor-league experience has made such a seamless transition to major-league life. Prolonging it means protecting Smith from himself. The Astros' 22-year-old wunderkind is walking into uncharted territory, where such a dogged work ethic may do more harm than help. 'It kills him when we tell him that,' first-base coach Dave Clark said. 'He's just such a perfectionist. But he's taken to it. He's starting to understand a little bit.' Two months remain in what is already the longest season of Smith's baseball life, a fact reiterated to the rookie by those around him. Smith's preference is to not change a thing about the routine he's crafted, be it taking the first bus, being early to the batting cages or continuing to learn the intricacies of outfield play alongside Clark. 'Just tell him that he ain't f—ing doing it,' Clark said with a smile. 'Leave it at that. Say, 'Hey, you're not doing it. That's it. Go sit down. Go back inside.' Because if we left it up to him, he'd still be doing it. We just have to make sure we are adamant about what we tell him.' Clark has morphed into one of Smith's most trusted mentors during a season defined by confronting learning curves. The latest is a delicate balancing act, intended to preserve Smith for the future without eliminating his ethos. 'He's in the middle of like, 'Oh my God, OK, I didn't know this. Wow, that's wild,'' bench coach Omar López said. 'It's going to feel a little bit weird when he starts to do stuff differently that he hasn't done in the last three months, but then later on, he's going to see, 'This helped me, so let me do it more often at this point in the season.' He'll figure out how to manage his stuff. Advertisement 'He's 22 and wants to play all the way to 39, 40. The first five years are the most important.' Smith is 13 months removed from playing in the College World Series for Florida State. He never took more than 322 plate appearances or played in more than 66 games in any collegiate season, all of which contained ample off days with limited travel. Even Smith's draft year only featured a combined 98 games and 384 plate appearances between college and the Chicago Cubs' minor-league system. Carrying him on the Opening Day roster this year all but assured Smith would shatter those benchmarks. He has already appeared in 88 games and accrued 349 plate appearances — and he's feeling the effects. 'He does not look as fresh as he did on Opening Day,' Clark acknowledged, claiming the club's recent trip through Colorado and Los Angeles took a bigger toll on Smith than others. 'He's getting used to it, but (if) we start to see maybe he's a step slower or his bat is dragging a little bit or he's not running like he normally runs, we'll just shut him down.' Houston does not have that luxury, but even if it did, it is far from the team's intent. Tailoring Smith's pre- or postgame workload is the priority. Smith is taking fewer swings in the batting cage and has stopped daily work with Clark in the outfield, though the duo still throws to bases or tracks fly balls 'a couple times a week,' Smith said. 'He needs to understand it's a ramp-up, then you get to the middle and stay there,' López said. 'You're going to get some ups and downs when you get to the middle, but then the whole idea is not to go all the way down. It's to stay right there before you ramp up and finish strong.' Few coaches are better equipped to counsel Smith than López and Clark. López is an Astros lifer who managed for 12 seasons within the club's minor-league system, where he guided several players in Smith's predicament. Advertisement Clark parlayed his 13-year playing career into 15 years of coaching, including two stints on the Astros' staff. Clark's first Astros tenure included teaching Michael Bourn: another excitable young outfielder he needed to temper. 'He comes out (and) wants to run down every fly ball when he's not hitting, and I had to make him stop doing that,' Clark said. 'I said, 'You hit, you go inside.' I know you're not a 10-year vet, but you make sure you go in and get your rest.' Smith is in impeccable shape and follows a strict diet, but many big leaguers can make the same claims. Adjusting to the travel, constant changes in time zones and quick turnarounds after a night game require more than the regimented routine Smith has. 'I think I've found a good routine to do in the weight room just to get my body ready, and I feel good every day,' said Smith, who lifts weights twice per week. 'I think I've found something I can rely on for now until I have to adjust, but I've been feeling good every day.' Smith did not start Wednesday's series finale against the Arizona Diamondbacks, part of manager Joe Espada's plan to protect the young outfielder as his workload grows. Smith has just eight hits in his past 57 at-bats, prompting an obvious question of whether the volume has caught up with him. Acquiring a left-handed hitting outfielder before the trade deadline could be beneficial if the Astros continue monitoring Smith's workload. General manager Dana Brown acknowledged as much during an appearance on the team's pregame radio show last week. Welcoming back injured outfield prospect Jacob Melton, another left-handed hitter, could serve the same purpose. Isaac Paredes' hamstring injury has already heightened Brown's desire to add another bat before the July 31 deadline, but even if he does, Smith will remain an everyday player. Ensuring that continues is crucial, even if it means breaking from precedent. 'It is tough, but having the coaches talk to me about it makes me realize, 'OK, maybe I should take a step back and show up a little bit later than I have been,'' Smith said. 'Nowadays it's not a bad idea to catch the second bus.'
Yahoo
22-07-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Astros get discouraging news on injured All-Star slugger
The Houston Astros might have to wait just a little bit longer to see the return of Yordan Alvarez. Alvarez has been nursing a hand fracture since early May. On Monday, he provided an update on his potential return, and it's not what the Astros want to hear. 'Where the pain is in the hand, it's a little bit difficult to have surgery there,' Alvarez said, per Chandler Rome of The Athletic. 'That's why I say I need a little bit of rest right now. It's an area where normally we don't get surgery in that area. But I think it isn't something I'll have to keep dealing with.' It feels like any day now Alvarez could return from his injury, but that day seems to be getting further and further away. Prior to his injury, Alvarez had yet to get going at the plate, hitting .210 with 3 home runs and a .646 OPS in 29 games, well below his usual All-Star standard. Despite the injury, the Astros have survived. The team is 57-42 with a four-game lead in the AL West, and have been a top hitting team in the majors thanks to Jeremy Pena, rookie Cam Smith, Jose Altuve, and Issac Paredes.
Yahoo
21-07-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Cam Smith's two-run double
Cam Smith smacks a two-run double to deep right field, tying the game at 3 in the top of the 5th inning
Daily Mail
18-07-2025
- Sport
- Daily Mail
How last Aussie standing at The Open Championship defied a 4am start to produce the form of his life at Royal Portrush
Australia's dwindling hopes of British Open success at Royal Portrush lie solely in the hands of a sleep-deprived Marc Leishman after a wretched day for the gold 'n green challenge on the Dunluce links. The experienced 'Big Leish' was the only Aussie out of a starting field of nine to make the cut on Friday, with former champion Cam Smith and 25-time Open veteran Adam Scott suffering particularly disheartening days. Leishman was let off the leash after being frustrated by the slow pace of play on the opening day - and the result was by far the best round from any of the battalion as he shot a three-under 68 to make the weekend on one under, the only Aussie all week to be in the red. With the cut having looked set to be at two over, Jason Day, runner-up two years ago, had dug deep to conjure a birdie on the penultimate hole, with a booming drive and 90ft chip stone-dead, to get to what he hoped would be the required mark. But, alas, the Queensland ace was left missing the boat on two over by just a shot as late afternoon conditions improved. Poor old Day must have still been harbouring hope at nearly 9:30 at night when the cut line was finally established at one over. Leishman, the lone survivor, has his work cut out, nine shots behind inspired leader Scottie Scheffler, but at least he enjoyed a much more fulfilling day - one that started at 4am before he was the first to tee off at 6:35am - than the one he endured on Thursday. Marc Leishman is through to the weekend at @TheOpen 🇦🇺 In testing conditions, the #Tokyo2020 Olympian is the sole Aussie to make the cut, currently Tied-26th on -1. With two rounds to go, Marc's 9 shots off the lead and only 3 shots off the top 10. #TeamAUS | @GolfAust — AUS Olympic Team (@AUSOlympicTeam) July 18, 2025 Playing in the first group of round two, Marc Leishman is three-under for the day through nine. — The Open (@TheOpen) July 18, 2025 The 41-year-old Victorian had bemoaned the interminable first round, complaining he felt like he'd been out there 'for about 12 hours' amid constant snarl-ups through slow play. But freed up among Friday's very first group out, the LIV Golf veteran, two-over-par overnight, enjoyed five birdies in the first dozen holes to move momentarily to within a shot of the early lead. Two bogeys at the next two holes, including a horrid shank off the tee at 13, checked his magisterial progress but a decade on from his 2015 St Andrews near-miss when beaten in a play-off, Leishman, three times an Open top-10 finisher, was able to come through with a smile. 'I was obviously pretty frustrated last night when I came in here,' he told reporters, apologetically. 'I always say to my wife, 'if I've had a bad day on the course, just give me 10 minutes, and I'll be good' ... I think you got me about the eight-minute mark!' Having got up at 4am - 'I set the alarm as late as possible, I love my sleep,' he sighed - Leishman spent the rest of Friday after his round watching his rivals' travails on TV. 'l'll probably have a pint or two of Guinness and enjoy my afternoon,' he had noted. There was nothing enjoyable for Scott out there, though, on his 25th consecutive British Open and 97th straight major appearance. Having started out as joint-leading Aussie alongside Smith, after their first-round 72s, Scott had been hoping to celebrate his eve-of-tournament 45th birthday with another stirring crack at the Claret Jug. But he had the most miserable day, making three double bogeys at the short third, the par four 11th where he drove into the bushes, and the par three 16th, before a bogey at the last left him with a 79 - his worst round at the British Open since his 82 at Royal St George's 22 years ago - and a tournament total of nine over. Smith fared little better, the 2022 champion shooting a 78, coughing up six bogeys and a double, with his lone birdie coming at the 17th as he ended on eight over. Min Woo Lee (73, five over for the championship), Lucas Herbert (72, four over), Curtis Luck (70, eight over) and Ryan Peake (73, eight over) didn't make it either. Early starter Elvis Smylie (70, three over) had a long fruitless wait, hoping the fairly mild weather might worsen to allow him to scrape in.
Newsweek
18-07-2025
- Sport
- Newsweek
Astros' Top Prospect Projected To Sign 8-Year, $80 Million Contract Extension
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. The Houston Astros swung a blockbuster offseason trade that sent Kyle Tucker to the Chicago Cubs in exchange for Isaac Paredes and top prospect Cam Smith. Despite getting off to a slow start in the big leagues, Smith has taken off over the last few months. He's looking like a future star while doing anything the Astros need from him. Because of this production, the Houston faithful are already dreaming about signing him to a massive contract. CBS Sports' Mike Axisa recently predicted the Astros would sign Smith to an eight-year, $80 million contract extension before the end of the season. HOUSTON, TEXAS - JULY 13: Zack Short #38 of the Houston Astros celebrates with Cam Smith #11 after hitting a solo home run during a game against the Texas Rangers at Daikin Park on July... HOUSTON, TEXAS - JULY 13: Zack Short #38 of the Houston Astros celebrates with Cam Smith #11 after hitting a solo home run during a game against the Texas Rangers at Daikin Park on July 13, 2025 in Houston, Texas. More"The Kyle Tucker trade is turning into a major win-win. Tucker has been fantastic for the first-place Cubs, and the Astros are getting great production from Smith and Isaac Paredes," Axisa wrote. "Smith, the No. 14 overall pick in last summer's draft, is hitting .277/.347/.418 with seven home runs this season, and he's been outstanding since June 1: .296/.346/.451 in 37 games. He's done that while learning a new position on the fly (right field). "For this bold prediction, I have the Astros locking Smith up to a long-term extension. In-season extensions are uncommon, especially in the second half, but Smith is a special player, and I don't think Houston will wait to act. How does eight years and $80 million sound? That's a bit more than the Braves gave Michael Harris II (eight years and $72 million) in the middle of his first big-league season three years ago." A deal like this doesn't seem out of the realm of possibilities. The Boston Red Sox locked Kristian Campbell up to a similar deal a few months ago. The San Diego Padres gave Jackson Merrill a massive extension this year, too. The Astros likely want Smith to stay in Houston for the foreseeable future. While he's played outfield this season, the Astros will likely move him to third base when Christian Walker leaves town. Either way, Smith looks to be an everyday player for the next few years, at the very least. Although he wasn't an All-Star in his rookie campaign, it wouldn't be shocking to see him named to the team next year if he continues to improve at the rate he is. More MLB: Diamondbacks Predicted To Cut Ties With $66 Million Slugger In Huge Trade
