After 2 trades and a breakout '26, Mariners prospect Smith leads Seattle's AFL crop

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. – The life of a Minor Leaguer can be a transient one. Upward mobility is always a hope, and the possibility of being traded is always there. Mariners No. 13 prospect Boston Smith experienced all of that and then some in his first full year of pro ball.

It began innocently and humbly enough as a sixth-round senior sign by the Nationals in 2025. He received a well-below slot $50,000 to join the organization following a final season at Wright State that saw him hit 26 homers and swipe 16 bags followed by a stint in the MLB Draft League. He never officially wore a Nats uniform, as he was sent to the White Sox near the end of Spring Training in return for Curtis Mead.

He settled into his new environment in a hurry, moving from Single-A to High-A by mid-April, then earning another promotion to Double-A at the start of July. He had already hit 22 homers when he was on the move again, this time to the Mariners at the Trade Deadline in the Luis Castillo deal.

“The first one just caught me completely off guard … no affiliate experience, a fourth-year college guy,” Smith said. “For them to go 1-for-1 with a big leaguer … it was cool to know the White Sox had done their homework and just took a chance, and it gave me a ton of confidence going into the season.”

“And then the second time, I was more prepared just because I had moved so much at that given point, and there were some rumors on social media,” Smith continued. “I'm not a big social media person myself, but people were texting me like, ‘Hey, have you seen this?’ And so knowing that, I kind of just mentally prepare for the worst. I was like, ‘OK, well there's a good chance by the end of this week I may not be in this clubhouse anymore.’ And then when I got scratched from the lineup, I just sort of accepted it like it's going to happen. Then when I got the phone call, it was just more of a ‘Where am I going?’ and getting ready for that next part of my career.”

Smith hit nine more homers post-trade, and his total of 31 made him one of just 23 Minor Leaguers with 30 or more long balls for the season. He entered pro ball with a reputation for power and patience, and he was one of six from the 30-homer club to draw more than 90 walks. Did the production and the promotions surprise him at all?

“Yes and no, more on the no, because I've always believed in myself, but I don't have any family that has played beyond high school,” Smith said. “I've just relied on former teammates, mentors and connections I've built throughout my career to have a feel for what is to be expected. And so It sort of helped me in a sense, being ‘naive,’ going out there and not knowing I'm about to face a top 100 prospect or catching and seeing a first-round guy step up to the plate."

That journey continues here in the Arizona Fall League, and even after several moves, 112 games and nearly 500 plate appearances, Smith was more than happy to keep things rolling with the Peoria Javelinas.

“It's cool now knowing I'm playing with some of the better prospects in Minor League Baseball,” Smith said. “Being able to see some former teammates and just people I've built connections with throughout the year is really cool. Whether it's good or bad, there's always something to learn. And knowing that now it's just, ‘How can I surround myself with the best of the best and how can I just come out better than what I came in going into the Fall League?’ That's just my attitude.

“I want to develop. I want to learn. I want to build connections and just enjoy."

He has particular gratitude to be able to keep working on his craft behind the plate. Smith is athletic enough to play the outfield, and he has done so plenty. But while he understands the importance of defensive versatility, it’s clear he has one real passion.

“I love catching,” Smith said. “I've always been a catcher my entire life, but either somebody gets hurt or there's been a better defensive catcher who can also hit, and it makes more sense for me to venture out and play different parts of the field. I would say it's very, very important to me, but in the same sense, it's very dependent now in pro ball on what the organization wants.

“I was an emergency second baseman in Low-A for the White Sox. I played 8 of 9 positions besides pitcher in college. Just being able to know how to play those positions and to be a reliable, trustworthy person, that if something ever were to happen, I can go play left field or right field. It's just kind of like a token in your back pocket where a team doesn't need to go search for another person where I can be that guy. It keeps me in the lineup. It allows me to just be myself and to maximize that is super important to me.”

Mariners hitters in the Fall League

Brandon Eike, 1B/3B: Eike spent two years at North Carolina, then two more at Virginia Commonwealth before going to the Mariners in the 13th round of the 2024 Draft. He struggled through his first full season with High-A Everett, but a return to the AquaSox in 2026 led to better overall results, leading the Northwest League with his 24 homers and his .535 SLG, albeit at age 24, while seeing time at both infield corners.

Matthew Ellis, C/1B: After redshirting at Tennessee in 2019, he spent two years at Walters State Community College before moving on to Indiana for another two seasons. A solid final college campaign at Georgia Tech in 2024 led to a free agent contract from the Mariners. He wasn’t an everyday player with High-A Everett in 2026 but did manage to hit 17 homers in 76 games split between first, designated hitter and behind the plate.

Mariners pitchers in the Fall League

Ty Cummings, RHP: Cummings spent three years pitching in relief for Campbell University, but after the Mariners took him in the seventh round of the 2023 Draft, he was given a chance to start in his first full season. Then he was sent to the Rays at the end of the 2024 season as the player to be named later in the Randy Arozarena trade. He reached Triple-A in 2025, but was back in Double-A when he went back to the Mariners this April. He didn’t throw well post-trade, with a 6.04 ERA with Double-A Arkansas, but he offers an interesting east-west profile and a heater that sat 95 mph back in relief this year.

Reid Easterly, LHP: Easterly spent three years pitching for Yale, serving as team captain in 2024, before moving to Duke as a graduate student and saving five games for the Blue Devils. That earned him a free agent contract with the Mariners in 2025. The 24-year-old lefty had a solid season pitching out of High-Everett’s bullpen, with a 4.81 K/BB ratio and 3.39 ERA. He was particularly tough against left-handed hitters (.540 OPS).

Jose Geraldo, RHP: Signed back in July of 2021 for just $7,500, Geraldo is an undersized reliever who has toiled away at the lower levels of the system. He spent his age-26 season with High-A Everett, striking out 10.3 per nine while seeing his walk rate tick up (4.4 per nine). He features mostly a low-90s fastball and an 80-82 mph breaking ball, both thrown with good spin rates.

Calvin Schapira, LHP: A 6-foot-5 lefty, Schapira was a journeyman in college, starting at Southern Cal in 2019, then moving to Central Arizona College the following year before pitching at Purdue in 2021, missing 2022 because of Tommy John surgery, then pitching at Purdue again in 2023. He finished up as a grad student at San Diego and pitched a little indy ball in 2024 before landing a contract with the Mariners ahead of the 2025 season. He spent the year at age 26 with High-A Everett and he can be effective against lefties with an upper-70s slider to go along with a 91-92 mph heater.

Adam Smith, RHP: Originally drafted by the Padres in the 14th round of the 2021 Draft out of UNC-Wilmington, Smith has since signed with the Red Sox as a Minor League free agent in 2024 and signed with an indy ball team in 2026 before the Mariners picked him up in May. The 26-year-old reliever touched Double-A this past season and has a fastball he can get up to 96 mph and will miss bats with an 80-mph slider.