The Houston Astros may soon have an enviable dilemma on their hands when it comes to putting together their roster for the 2025 season.
When the team shipped away Kyle Tucker in an offseason blockbuster to the Chicago Cubs, the biggest piece in the return package was seen to be the Astros replacement at third base for Alex Bregman in slugging third baseman Isaac Paredes.
A right-handed bat who would benefit immensely in the power department by hitting in Daikin Park, Paredes’ addition was a savvy move to potentially make Houston not skip a beat at the hot corner.
As spring training has raged on however, another piece from the return is proving he was the most significant, and could even find his way onto the roster much sooner than anticipated.
From the moment he arrived to the Astros, Cam Smith became the top prospect in the organization. In an incredibly talented Cubs farm system, Houston may very well have secured the best of them all by forcing Chicago’s hand for Smith.
Even for how talented on paper the 2024 first round pick is though, he has not played a full season in the minor leagues and was seen as at least a couple of years away from being ready for the big leagues.
Smith is proving that initial projection may not have been optimistic enough with how he’s hitting the ball in camp.
Granted it’s a small sample size, but through just five spring training games, Smith has produced an absolute laughably ridiculous slash line of .571/.727/1.714, good for an OPS of 2.442 with two home runs, four hits and four walks in just 11 total plate appearances.
In 32 minor league games from Low-A to High-A and finishing in Double-A i.n 2024, Smith slashed .313/.396/.609 with seven home runs and 24 RBI, numbers to begin a professional career which inspire hope he’s going to be a star.
Having played just over a month’s worth of minor league games total and just turning 22 years old less than two weeks ago, the idea before camp that Smith could be a factor this season seemed absurd.
He will need to continue to prove it to not have it sound ridiculous and even if he continues hitting like this throughout the spring it’s still more likely than not Smith will begin the season in Double-A.
With that being said, there’s no question the youngster is way ahead of even where Houston expected him to be at this stage in his development. If he continues to absolutely dominate pitching the way he has been thus far though, who’s to say the Astros can’t say he looks ready right now?
Expecting him to make the Opening Day roster would be setting yourself up for disappointment at this stage, but Smith is at least giving Houston something to think about at the ridiculous pace he has been hitting.
If it continues both throughout the rest of spring training and the beginning of the season – whether it’s in Double-A or Triple-A – Smith’s arrival can be expected imminently instead of two years down the line.