Justin Smoak
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Justin Kyle Smoak (born December 5, 1986 in Goose Creek, South Carolina) is an American professional baseball player. Smoak graduated from Stratford High School in 2005 and went on to play college baseball for the South Carolina Gamecocks. After his junior year, he was drafted by the Texas Rangers in the 2008 MLB Draft on June 5, 2008 as the eleventh overall selection.[1]
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[edit] High School Career
Smoak played four years of varsity high school baseball under coach John Chaleus.[2] It wasn't until his junior year in high school that scouts began to notice his talent because, ironically, they were originally scouting his teammate and friend, Matt Wieters.[3] However, Smoak soon made his presence known among scouts. He was named by ABCA, Baseball America, and Collegiate Baseball as a 2005 high school All-American.[2] He was also one of 36 high school players in the nation to play in the 2005 high school All-American baseball game, named South Carolina AAAA Player of the Year in 2004 and 2005, named co-Mr. Baseball for 2005 in South Carolina (alongside teammate Reese Havens), made the 2004 and 2005 South Carolina AAAA All-State team, and a member of the 2005 South Carolina AAAA state championship team while with Stratford.[2] He was initially drafted by the Oakland Athletics as a sixteenth-round pick in 2005 upon graduation[4], but deferred and went to the University of South Carolina because "it felt like the place to be. . .".[2]
[edit] College Career
In his three years playing for South Carolina, Smoak constantly put up big numbers. After batting .303 with 17 home runs and 63 RBI, Smoak earned Freshman All-American honors.[5] He followed up with a .315 batting average, 22 home runs, and 72 RBI in his sophomore year, enough to be tabbed as a third-team All-American.[5] For his junior year, Smoak batted .389, with 20 home runs and 61 RBI.[4]
Smoak has also been named a semi-finalist for the Golden Spikes Award in 2007 and 2008.[6]
[edit] Cape Cod League and Team USA stints
In the summer of 2006, Smoak played for the Cotuit Kettleers in the Cape Cod Baseball League. He led all hitters with 11 home runs, a .565 slugging percentage, and 21 extra-base hits,[7] en route to the MVP award.
In the summer of 2007, Smoak was a representative for Team USA. During the 2007 Pan American Games, Smoak struggled, hitting .190 for the tournament. He won a silver medal there, when his team lost to Cuba in the finals. Later, he competed with Team USA again in the 2007 World Port Tournament. However, his batting average did not fair any better, as he finished with a .208 average, although he did lead the tournament with three doubles. In all, Smoak hit .223 and had a .380 slugging percentage for Team USA over the summer.[8]
[edit] Scouting Report
Smoak was touted, early and often, by scouts as one of the best offensive first basemen in the 2008 draft.[9][10] They were even drawing comparisons between himself, Mark Teixeira, and Chipper Jones; Smoak found it flattering that scouts compared his swing to both Teixeira and Jones.[11] Baseball America wrote that as a first baseman, Smoak had "Gold Glove-caliber actions and soft hands", as well as "advanced footwork and instincts at first base", though they wrote that he had adequate arm strength.[5] Nonetheless, several scouting reports wrote that his biggest strength was his ability to hit for both power and average on both sides of the plate.[9][5]
[edit] MLB draft
Smoak was considered to have been as high as a top-5 pick in the 2008 draft. However, he slipped out of the top-10, and the Texas Rangers picked him with the eleventh selection in the draft. USA Today wrote that the Rangers "getting Smoak at No. 11 may be the best value pick of the first round."[12] He was the Rangers' first overall pick, as well as the first player from the University of South Carolina to be drafted in 2008.
