The Yankees outrighted Smith to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre on Wednesday.
Prior reports suggested that Smith declined the assignment and planned to pursue free agency, but the infielder will end up sticking around in the Yankees organization. Smith will provide infield depth for the Yankees at Scranton/Wilkes-Barre.
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Kevin Smith: Elects free agency
Rotowire
Smith elected to become a free agent Tuesday.
Smith has not registered a big-league plate appearance this season despite enjoying two separate stints with the Yankees. Rather than returning to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre on an outright assignment, he'll look to secure a deal elsewhere in free agency. The 27-year-old owns a mere .516 OPS during his major-league career, so it's unlikely he nets anything more than another minor-league deal.
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Yankees' Kevin Smith: Selected from Triple-A
Rotowire
The Yankees selected Smith's contract from Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre on Saturday.
Smith spent time with the Yankees for a short stint in mid-April, though he never registered a plate appearance while in New York. He has slashed .204/.270/.286 across 111 plate appearances in the minors this season, and his time with the Yankees will likely be short-lived again due to DJ LeMahieu (foot) trending toward a return during the upcoming series against the Angels.
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Yankees' Kevin Smith: Outrighted to Triple-A
Rotowire
The Yankees sent Smith outright to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre on Saturday.
The Yankees DFA'd Smith on Thursday after claiming outfielder Taylor Trammell off waivers from the Dodgers, and the 27-year-old infielder will officially remain in the organization after passing through waivers unclaimed. Smith is slashing just .182/.282/.212 across 39 Triple-A plate appearances and is unlikely to return to New York barring a significant turnaround.
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Yankees' Kevin Smith: Pushed off 40-man
Rotowire
The Yankees designated Smith for assignment Thursday.
Smith was selected from Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre on Saturday, but the Yankees claiming Taylor Trammell off waivers from the Dodgers will leave Smith without a 40-man roster spot once again. The 27-year-old Smith never appeared at the plate during his brief stint in New York, and a .516 OPS throughout his MLB career makes it likely he passes through waivers unclaimed.
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Yankees' Kevin Smith: Added to roster
Rotowire
The Yankees selected Smith's contract from Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre on Saturday, YES Network reports.
With Jon Berti landing on the injured list due to an adductor injury, Smith will be brought up from the minors to give the Yankees additional infield depth. The 27-year-old owns a .173/.215/.301 slash line through 333 career plate appearances, and he's posted just a .494 OPS through nine games in Triple-A.
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Yankees' Kevin Smith: Sent to minors camp
Rotowire
The Yankees reassigned Smith to minor-league camp on Monday, Bryan Hoch of MLB.com reports.
Smith was in contention for a reserve role because the Yankees lack an ideal backup shortstop, but he ultimately didn't make the cut. The 27-year-old will represent infield depth at Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre.
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Yankees' Kevin Smith: Gets deal from Yankees
Rotowire
Smith agreed to a minor-league contract with the Yankees on Monday, Jon Heyman of the New York Post reports.
Smith was non-tendered by the Athletics earlier this offseason even though he's still a couple years away from arbitration eligibility. The 27-year-old has put up some solid numbers in the minors during his career but has managed just a .516 OPS and a 31.2 percent strikeout rate over 114 games at the major-league level. Smith can play all over the infield and also the corner outfield spots in a pinch.
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Kevin Smith: Non-tendered by Oakland
Rotowire
Smith became a free agent Friday after the Athletics declined to tender him a contract.
The A's will officially move on from Smith after the 27-year-old infielder slashed just .185/.220/.326 through 146 big-league plate appearances. However, he put up an impressive 1.025 OPS with Triple-A Las Vegas, so he should be able to secure a minor-league deal relatively easily.
Smith was optioned to Triple-A Las Vegas on Tuesday.
Smith was called up from Las Vegas on Sept. 5 and played in 15 games during his three weeks with the big club, but he failed to take advantage of the playing time with a .544 OPS and 38.6 percent strikeout rate in 41 at-bats. The 27-year-old has a .185/.220/.326 slash line over 146 plate appearances in the majors this season and is now likely to close the campaign with those figures.
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Athletics' Kevin Smith: Doubles, scores in loss
Rotowire
Smith went 1-for-3 with a double and a run in a loss to the Tigers on Thursday.
Smith had one of only two extra-base hits for the Athletics on Thursday, with his two-bagger serving as his third during his current big-league stint. Smith has seen near-everyday playing time since being recalled from Triple-A Las Vegas on Sept. 5, but the same issues that have plagued him in prior samples against big-league arms persist -- the 27-year-old has just a .212 batting average across 36 plate appearances, with that figure largely the byproduct of a bloated 38.9 percent strikeout rate.
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Athletics' Kevin Smith: Remains on bench
Rotowire
Smith will sit for the second straight game Saturday against San Diego.
Smith hasn't done much to stake a claim for regular at-bats during his 42 games at the big-league level this season, slashing .200/.233/.357. Aledmys Diaz will start at third base Saturday, with Nick Allen starting at shortstop.
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Athletics' Kevin Smith: On bench Friday
Rotowire
Smith is not in the lineup Friday against the Padres.
Jordan Diaz will start at third base and bat sixth as Nick Allen plays shortstop and hits eighth. The 27-year-old Smith has slashed just .200/.233/.357 across 125 major-league plate appearances this year with the Athletics.
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Athletics' Kevin Smith: Sitting Tuesday
Rotowire
Smith is not in Tuesday's lineup against the Astros.
Smith is hitting .278 with one home run, two doubles and nine strikeouts in five games since getting recalled from Triple-A Las Vegas on Sept. 5. He could continue to see fairly steady work down the stretch, but Smith's elevated strikeout rate makes him a very volatile option over the rest of the season.
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Athletics' Kevin Smith: Slugs key blast in return
Rotowire
Smith went 2-for-4 with a three-run home run in a win over the Blue Jays on Wednesday.
Just recalled from Triple-A Las Vegas on Tuesday, the 27-year-old paid immediate dividends via a 398-foot shot to left center in the sixth inning with Jordan Diaz and Carlos Perez aboard. Smith had been running hot at the plate for the Aviators during his just-concluded 19-game stint on the farm, slashing .351/.392/.635 with nine extra-base hits and 20 RBI. However, Smith has raked in the hitter-friendly environment of the PCL before and then sputtered against big-league arms, so Wednesday's breakout represented a particularly encouraging start to his latest stay with the Athletics.
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Athletics' Kevin Smith: Recalled from Vegas
Rotowire
The Athletics recalled Smith from Triple-A Las Vegas on Tuesday.
Smith will come up from the minors to replace Lawrence Butler, who was placed on the bereavement list Tuesday. The 27-year-old Smith is slashing .324/.372/.653 through 183 plate appearances in the minors this season, but his success has yet to translate over into the big leagues with just a .546 OPS in 94 at-bats this season.
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Athletics' Kevin Smith: Tearing up Triple-A pitching
Rotowire
Smith is hitting .392 with six home runs and 19 RBI over the 76 plate appearances he's logged with Triple-A Las Vegas since being optioned to the Aviators on Aug. 5.
Smith also has a pair of steals and walks apiece along with 15 runs over that 18-game span, which comes on the heels of a six-game rehab assignment with the Aviators during which he posted a .381 average and 1.123 OPS. The 27-year-old's big-league body of work has been in stark contrast to those numbers, however, as Smith has a forgettable .191/.216/.330 slash line over 34 games with the Athletics this season. Consequently, it's uncertain a non-contending team like Oakland will invest a spot in Smith when rosters expand Sept. 1.
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Athletics' Kevin Smith: Reinstated, sent to Triple-A
Rotowire
Smith (back) was activated from the 10-day injured list Saturday and optioned to Triple-A Las Vegas.
The 27-year-old is fully recovered from the back strain that sent him to the injured list in mid-June, but he won't rejoin the big club now that he's healthy. Smith has appeared in 34 MLB games this season and has a .191/.216/.330 slash line and 33.3 percent strikeout rate in 102 plate appearances.
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Athletics' Kevin Smith: Another full game on defense
Rotowire
Smith (back) started at second base and played the entirety of Triple-A Las Vegas' loss to Albuquerque on Friday, going 1-for-5.
Smith has now played consecutive full games on defense for the first time in his rehab assignment, seemingly teeing up a return to the big-league club. The infielder, who's been out since mid-June with a back strain, has hit .381 (8-for-21) with a double, two home runs, five RBI, a walk and four runs across six rehab games with the Aviators.
