Los Angeles Dodgers: Five prospects that could be this year’s Cody Bellinger

Will Smith – C

(MiLB Career) AVG: .238 G: 128 H: 109 OBP: .357 HR: 15

This is where things get a little tricky for the Dodgers. They have some amazing prospects that are almost ready for the majors. Will Smith, for example, is LA’s next Austin Barnes. In fact, I wouldn’t be surprised if the only catchers we see in Dodger blue between now and the time Smith makes his debut is Barnes, Yasmani Grandal, and Kyle Farmer.

Smith, though, is still in Double-A Tulsa. Double-A has been said to be the place where a player gets their first taste of the majors. It’s where the dreams of so many start to become real.

A player going from Double-A to the majors has been done before. Cincinnati Reds pitcher Mike Leake skipped the minors altogether, but it’s not common. It also doesn’t seem like something the Dodgers would do. But the majors aren’t too far out of reach for Smith. He hasn’t been in Double-A long but has already shown great promise. In his two years in the minors, he’s shown patience at the plate by walking 66 times. He has a .400 batting average when the bases are loaded.

Smith has been invited to Spring Training, meaning that the Dodgers see his potential. A jump to Triple-A seems like likely, and the majors are not entirely outside the realm of possibility for 2018.

He may not be the Dodgers’ 2018 answer to who the next Bellinger will be, but he’s on the rise. At 22, he’s projected to make the majors sooner rather than later. And, when he does, the Cody Bellinger comparisons will start roll in.