Pavin Smith’s big second half in Double-A last season put him back on the Diamondbacks’ prospect map, earned him an invitation to big league camp and put him in position to potentially push his way to the majors sometime this year.
It is a significant turn of events for the first-round pick, especially considering where he stood last June. At that point, he had not really shown the sort of aptitude at the plate as a professional that compelled the Diamondbacks to select him with the seventh overall pick in 2017. Then something clicked.
“I think I just got some of my confidence back, realizing the hitter I’ve been and being able to have confidence going up to the plate every time instead of trying to search for certain answers,” Smith said.