The Athletics optioned Smith to Triple-A Las Vegas on Sunday.
Smith was called up by the A's on April 10 and will head back to the minors after he posted a .184/.205/.316 slash line with three home runs, seven RBI and eight runs in 82 plate appearances. Aledmys Diaz (hamstring) was reinstated from the 10-day injured list in a corresponding move.
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Athletics' Kevin Smith: Crushes third homer of season
Rotowire
Smith went 1-for-1 with a solo home run in Friday's 9-7 victory over Texas.
Smith's 433-foot shot to left-center tied the game at 3-3 in the fourth inning. This marks just the sixth homer of the shortstop's career, and he still hasn't batted over .200 in a big-league season.
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Athletics' Kevin Smith: Homers in loss
Rotowire
Smith went 2-for-4 with a solo home run and an additional run scored Wednesday in a loss to the Angels.
The Athletics were routed in the contest, but Smith had a productive performance with his second homer and second multi-hit effort of the campaign. The infielder has started each of the first three games in the series against the Angels, going 4-for-10 with a pair of homers and four RBI.
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Athletics' Kevin Smith: Blasts three-run homer Monday
Rotowire
Smith went 1-for-2 with a three-run home run in an extra-inning win over the Angels on Monday.
The Athletics' offense finally had a breakout night in the new season, and Smith followed teammates Brent Rooker and Jesus Aguilar in leaving the yard early in the contest. Rooker's 385-foot shot to left in the second inning was the most productive of the three early round trippers, as it plated Aledmys Diaz and Carlos Perez to push Oakland's lead to 5-0 at the time. Smith has now hit safely in four consecutive starts, slowly crawling out of an early-season hole at the plate that is responsible for his slash line still sitting at an abysmal .186/.186/.279, even when factoring in recent success.
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Athletics' Kevin Smith: Not starting Sunday
Rotowire
Smith is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Rangers.
Smith started the past six games and will step out of the lineup Sunday after he went 5-for-22 during that span. Tyler Wade will take over at shortstop in the series finale versus Texas.
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Athletics' Kevin Smith: Captures everyday role
Rotowire
Smith will start at shortstop and bat sixth in Wednesday's game against the Cubs.
Smith will be making his fourth consecutive start and looks to have at least temporarily settled in as Oakland's everyday shortstop. Though Smith likely doesn't have a long leash given that he enters Wednesday's contest having slashed .143/.143/.143 through 29 plate appearances on the season, the 3-15 Athletics aren't teeming with appealing alternatives, especially with two of their top hitters in Seth Brown (oblique) and Ramon Laureano (groin) recently moving to the injured list.
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Athletics' Kevin Smith: Steals base Sunday
Rotowire
Smith went 1-for-4 with a stolen base and a run scored in Sunday's 4-3 loss to the Mets.
Smith kicked off the fifth inning with a single and then stole second before coming around to score on a base hit by Esteury Ruiz. The 26-year-old has just three hits and a 10:0 K:BB over 23 plate appearances since being called up April 10.
The Athletics recalled Smith from Triple-A Las Vegas on Monday.
Smith joins the 26-man active roster as a replacement for outfielder/first baseman Seth Brown (oblique), who was placed on the 10-day injured list. While he's up with Oakland, the righty-hitting Smith could fill the short side of a platoon at third base with the lefty-hitting Jace Peterson.
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Athletics' Kevin Smith: Call-up coming Monday
Rotowire
Smith will be recalled from Triple-A Las Vegas on Monday, Martin Gallegos of MLB.com reports.
Smith is going to replace Seth Brown on the roster, with Brown heading to the injured list due to a left oblique injury. Smith came up short on his bid to make the Opening Day roster, but he'll get a chance to be a bench option for the Athletics while Brown recovers.
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Athletics' Kevin Smith: Heading to Triple-A
Rotowire
Manager Mark Kotsay announced Monday that Smith didn't make the Athletics' Opening Day roster and will begin the season with Triple-A Las Vegas, Matt Kawahara of the San Francisco Chronicle reports.
The 26-year-old was in the running to claim Oakland's last bench spot, but Brent Rooker instead won the job. Smith began last season as the club's primary third baseman but played in just 47 big-league games and had a .518 OPS and 27.9 percent strikeout rate. He had a .268/.31/.446 slash line across 86 contests for Las Vegas last year, and he'll likely receive another look in the majors at some point in 2023.
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Athletics' Kevin Smith: Keeps raking in Thursday's tie
Rotowire
Smith went 3-for-4 with a pair of run-scoring singles that netted three RBI, a double and a run in a Cactus League tie with the Rangers on Thursday.
Smith's torrid spring continued with his fourth multi-hit effort of Cactus League play, which pushed his average to .385 and his RBI total to 14. The 26-year-old does have 15 strikeouts in 46 plate appearances, but the upside he's flashed when putting the ball in play seemingly gives him job security as a reserve infielder who could progressively work himself into a solid amount of playing time.
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Athletics' Kevin Smith: Goes yard Sunday
Rotowire
Smith, who went 2-for-3 with a solo home run in Sunday's 10-3 Cactus League loss to the Padres, is now hitting .353 (6-for-17) across seven Cactus League contests.
Smith has hit safely in three of the last four exhibitions, and he also notably got Cactus League play off to a rousing start with a two-hit, three-RBI day against the Diamondbacks on Feb. 25. On the other hand, he has a 0:8 BB:K so far this spring after posting a 27.8 percent strikeout rate in the majors in 2022, and a 30.0 percent rate at Triple-A. The 26-year-old struggled to a .180/.216/.302 slash line across 151 plate appearances at the big-league level last year, but he's put up impressive power/speed numbers at every minor-league stop and can potentially fill in at shortstop, third base, designated hitter and the corner outfield spots.
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Athletics' Kevin Smith: Still scuffling in Vegas
Rotowire
Smith, who was optioned to Triple-A Las Vegas on June 13, has produced a .208/.257/.228 slash line over his first 25 games with the Aviators.
Smith has alarmingly struck out at a higher clip (31.2 percent) with Las Vegas than he did with the Athletics (27.8 percent), and his batting average and OBP are only marginally better than the .180 and .216 figures he generated at the big-league level. The 26-year-old did post a .285 average and .931 OPS with Triple-A Buffalo in the Blue Jays organization last season, and he figures to remain at Las Vegas trying to iron out the kinks unless injuries necessitate a promotion.
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Athletics' Kevin Smith: Sent to Triple-A
Rotowire
Smith was optioned to Triple-A Las Vegas on Monday, Matt Kawahara of the San Francisco Chronicle reports.
Smith is 0-for-16 at the dish over seven games in June and has just one hit over his last 40 at-bats, so he'll head to the minors to push the reset button. The Athletics have yet to announce a corresponding move.
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Athletics' Kevin Smith: Sitting Wednesday
Rotowire
Smith is not in the lineup Wednesday against Atlanta.
Smith will sit out a second consecutive game Wednesday as Matt Davidson will draw another start at third base and bat eighth. It's possible that Davidson will get the lion's share of starts at the hot corner for the time being.
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Athletics' Kevin Smith: Hits bench again Tuesday
Rotowire
Smith is out of the lineup for Tuesday's game in Atlanta, Matt Kawahara of the San Francisco Chronicle reports.
Smith will take a seat for the second time in three games while the Athletics give new Triple-A Las Vegas call-up Matt Davidson a look at third base. Though Oakland is in rebuilding mode and is prioritizing the development of younger players, Smith could be at risk of a demotion if his ongoing slump continues much longer. Over his last 10 games, Smith has gone 1-for-30 while striking out 11 times and drawing only two walks.
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Athletics' Kevin Smith: On bench Saturday
Rotowire
Smith isn't starting Saturday against Boston.
Smith started in the last two games and went 0-for-6 with a walk and four strikeouts. He'll get a breather while Chad Pinder starts at the hot corner and bats fifth.
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Athletics' Kevin Smith: Walks in return to action
Rotowire
Smith (knee) went 0-for-2 with a walk in a loss to the Astros on Wednesday.
The rookie had missed Tuesday's matchup with a knee bruise, but he was able to start and play a full game at third base Wednesday. Smith is still mostly scuffling against big-league arms, as his season line stands at an unsightly .200/.227/.336 following Wednesday's contest.
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Athletics' Kevin Smith: Back in lineup
Rotowire
Smith (knee) is starting Wednesday's game against the Astros.
Smith sat out Tuesday's matchup due to a bruised knee, but he'll start at the hot corner and bat eighth Wednesday. He went 1-for-11 with a double and two strikeouts over the his last three games.
