There were many who believed that Oakland Athletics outfielder Jake Smolinski was on pace to make the Opening Day roster, but on Sunday, the 27-year-old was optioned to the Triple-A Nashville Sounds squad instead.
Heading into Sunday’s contest, Smolinski was batting .316/.357/.500 this spring, including a home run and eight RBIs. He had struck out only four times, and seemed to be playing extremely well as he battled for one of the highly-coveted outfield spots. However, with Khris Davis, Billy Burns and Josh Reddick locked in, only bench spots remained up for grabs.