The New York Yankees announced Monday that they have re-signed first baseman Dominic Smith to a minor-league deal.
The veteran left-handed bat — once a top prospect of the Mets before short stints with the Washington Nationals, Boston Red Sox, and Cincinnati Reds — was brought in by the Yankees on a minor-league deal for spring training earlier this year.
He impressed across 13 exhibition games, batting .297 with an .857 OPS, three home runs, and 12 RBI.
“He came in and has done everything he’s needed to do,” manager Aaron Boone said on March 21. “Clearly, he’s a big-league player. He’s been great in the room, he’s performed, feel like he’s in really good shape.”
However, he did not make the team’s initial 40-man roster, which allowed Smith to trigger the opt-out in his contract. Instead, the team went with left-hander Ben Rice to take the bulk of the injured Giancarlo Stanton’s DH at-bats to start the season. They are also carrying another two lefties in catcher JC Escarra and outfielder Trent Grisham on their bench.
Smith batted .233 with six home runs and 34 RBI in 93 games with the Red Sox and Reds last season.
