From BA:
As a first baseman, Smoak has Gold Glove-caliber actions and soft hands. His footwork and instincts
around the bag are advanced and his arm strength is adequate.
That's by far the most positive opinion I've seen.
Oh, one more thing: Smoak is limited to first base, that's his ceiling. If he doesn't meet expectation, you can't move him to left field and say "we will hide him there". So the next drop for him from first base is... DH. I'll say it again for those who have not been listening: Houston does not employ the DH as a backup plan in case a young man can't cut it in the majors as a fielder. One thing every major league player will tell you if you listen is this: the game is really fast in the majors, much quicker than it is in any other level of baseball and especially in college. Think Jack Cust and Arizona.
From MinorLeagueBaseball.com:
Justin Smoak:
Hitting Ability: Smoak has a real and easy swing and gets coverage through the entire hitting area.
Power: He's got plus power now and in the future, from both sides of the plate. He could be a 35-40 homer guy at the big-league level.
Running Speed: He's below average, with heavy legs. He's a bit stiff and knock-kneed.Base running: Thanks to some good instincts, he's not quite a base clogger.
Arm Strength: He's got an average arm, but it's good enough for first base. (first indication he's average as a defender)
Fielding: He's not bad
around the base with good hands. (i.e. If it's hit to him, he'll catch it. If it's a ball thrown to him, he'll catch it. Doesn't really scream "gold glove" to me though. In fact, saying "he's not bad" is really a back handed compliment, meaning he's not really great either.)
Range: The
lack of footspeed and heavy lower half provide
very limited range. (you know, typically a gold glove first baseman needs a little bit of range, aka Derek Lee type... slow footed, heavy lower half is talking about a Ortiz like player around first, who was definitely a first baseman in Minnesota but is now a DH in Boston.)
Physical Description: Smoak has a large frame with a thick lower half. His upper body is pretty loose and moves easily.
Medical Update: Healthy.
Strengths: The bat, both for average and power, from both sides of the plate. (I'm sorry, I'm looking hard for the talk about his gold glove defense here under *strengths* and I just can't seem to find it... anybody want to help me out?)
Weaknesses: Below-average speed and
he's limited defensively to first base. (Nevermind, I found his defense her under *weakness*. Limited to first base is what we've been saying, this *IS* his ceiling, you can't move him to left field or somewhere else so he's either a first baseman if he develops or maybe like Ortiz he eventually moves to DH).
Summary: There are a number of top-notch college first basemen in this year's class and Smoak is right at the top of the list. That's because he's got a smooth and easy swing that generates plenty of power from both sides of the plate. This isn't college power; it will translate just fine to the pro game.
He can't run and is limited to first base defensively, but there will be more than enough bat to make up for those shortcomings. (excuse me, did he say *shortcomings*? WOW!)
