These are good times for Rays' Bobby Smith

Back from exile, the Rays second baseman is playing better and enjoying himself more.

By MARC TOPKIN

© St. Petersburg Times, published June 25, 2000

ARLINGTON, Texas -- The blond curls catch your eye first. And the leaner, more athletic frame. But the more you watch Bobby Smith play these days, you realize something else is different.

He is playing well, which wasn't always the case during his previous stints with the Devil Rays, and, even more striking, he is having fun doing so.

"I think that's the biggest thing," Smith said. "You watch all the guys who play well and they look like they're having fun.

"You've got to know how to play the game a little bit to play it well. But the biggest thing is that when you're having fun, you can react to a lot of situations that come your way and know how to deal with them."

Things seemed so simple for Smith when the Rays snatched him from the Atlanta farm system with their sixth pick in the November 1997 expansion draft and brought him to the big leagues.

He played well in 1998, sharing the starting third-base job with Wade Boggs and earning All-Rookie Team honors. But Smith got off to a miserable start in 1999, was back in the minors by mid-May and never recovered after a late July recall.

By the time he came to spring training this year, he'd lost his job and his confidence. When the Rays made him their last cut the morning of the opener, he'd lost his spot in the major leagues, going unclaimed by 29 other teams.

So Smith went back to Triple A, moved to second base and played his way back. He was hitting .293 with 17 homers and a league-high 56 RBI for Durham, and he continued his success with the Rays. He has three three-hit games (including two homers) in his nine starts, is batting .395 and is playing tremendous defense.

"I think confidence is the biggest thing," manager Larry Rothschild said. "Knowing he's going to be playing, and the ability to make the adjustments with that."

It's an interesting cycle. Rothschild keeps playing Smith because he is doing well; Smith says he's doing well because he's playing every day.

"Once you get in the lineup a lot, you get in a comfort zone where you don't try to do more than you need to," Smith said. "Instead of trying to make every great play or have every big hit, it's just going out there and playing."

Rothschild says being sent down and having to battle back could turn out to be a key learning experience in Smith's career. Smith isn't necessarily convinced it was necessary. But no one is going to quibble with the results. They're having too much fun.

© St. Petersburg Times. All rights reserved.

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