Cam

Smith

Smith capped off a five-run uprising in the opening inning with a 414-foot (108.1 mph EV) three-run shot off of Orioles’ right-hander Brandon Young. That would be hit lone hit in four at-bats on the night, though he also worked a walk. For the season, the 23-year-old outfielder is slashing an underwhelming .219/.317/.381, though he has blasted four home runs, stolen four bases and driven in 15.

He’ll likely start the second game. Smith has seen his OPS nosedive over the past week — he was at .868 on April 15, and he enters play on Thursday at .670, with just one steal or homer over that timespan.

This is a routine day off for Smith, who has gone 3-for-22 over his last seven games. However, even over that stretch, he has a 4/4 K/BB ratio, a 45 percent hard hit rate, and four barrels. His .136 batting average over that last week is a far cry from his .293 xBA. While expected stats are not perfect, Smith continues to make plenty of hard contact this season, with massive improvements in bat speed and better plate discipline. We’d imagine a hot stretch is coming again. In the meantime, Taylor Trammell will continue to start in center field, Dustin Harris will play right field against a right-handed pitcher, and Brice Matthews will start in left field.

Smith blistered a pair of doubles and singled twice. The 23-year-old was in a mini-slump with a 1-for-11 mark over his last three games, but this is more inline — to a higher extent, of course — to what we’ve seen to begin the 2026 season. He’s now up to an OPS of .941, and it’s a wonderful reminder of why fantasy managers were so excited to see what he can do in 2025.

Smith absolutely destroyed a Ryan Feltner offering, and it traveled an estimated 462 feet in the air with an exit velocity just under 111 mph. He also drew a walk and doubled to raise his slash to .297/.422/.595 with three homers in the first 11 games. There’s a long way to go, but it’s great to see Smith look like the player that enticed — but ultimately disappointed — fantasy managers in 2025 as a rookie.

Smith draws his first off day after starting eight consecutive contests in right field. The 23-year-old former top prospect is hitting .222 (6-for-27) with one homer and two steals this season. The fact that he’s posted a near-elite 74.4 mph bat speed so far is an encouraging sign for his future, even if he’s not making a ton of loud contact right now. It’ll be Joey Loperfido taking over in right field in his place.

The homer was hit just 346 feet and would have been an out in a lot of ballparks, but he’ll take it. The walk came five pitches after Smith somehow got away with a phantom swing and a miss for strike three, but he’ll also take that. Smith doesn’t seem quite ready to bust out as a star as a sophomore, but if he keeps playing regularly, he’ll probably offer some mixed-league value.

Cole busted out in the minors last year and continue to thrive in 15 major league games at the end of the season, but strikeouts still could be his undoing. He’s fanned 14 times while hitting .172 in his 33 plate appearances this spring. Last year, he struck out 35 percent of the time in the minors and 38 [percent of the time in his Astros audition. Cam Smith currently has nearly 300 points of OPS on him (.871 to .582), so barring a strong finish in the Grapefruit League, he might be sent back to Triple-A.

Smith knocked in his first run on an infield single in the first inning, but then blasted a 106 mph ground rule double to score another run in the sixth inning. The 23-year-old took an extreme groundball approach in the second half of the 2025 season to make consistent contact and get his batting average up, but he has been clearly trying to pull and lift the ball more this spring. Given what Smith did in his MLB at-bats last season with barely any plate appearances in the high minors, we should expect him to take a clear step forward this season, and he is outplaying Zach Cole for a starting outfield role.

Smith did his damage off of Orlando Ribalta in the fifth inning, demolishing a fastball for a 440-foot (107.5 mph EV) solo shot. That would prove to be the extent of the Astros’ offense in the ballgame. The 23-year-old outfielder also picked up a single in the eighth inning. For the spring, he’s hitting a solid .278 (5-for-18) with one homer and one RBI in the early going.