2023 Cleveland Guardians prospect scouting report: #43 RHP Cade Smith

The Canadian native got to pitch in the WBC for his home country and counts velocity, extension and deception among the positives as a relief prospect with possibly more in the tank.

Build & Background

A native of British Colombia, Canada, Smith played his college baseball at the University of Hawaii and was a 16th round pick of the Minnesota Twins in 2017 out of high school. Cleveland signed Smith as an undrafted free agent of out college after the shortened 2020 draft. Smith is long and lanky in the arms and legs. He has a low 3/4 sort of delivery with extension that makes him tough. Well built athlete and pitcher. Pitched for Team Canada in the 2023 World Baseball Classic. 

Jay L @JayLVideoBP

Cade Smith strikeout of Pete Alonso for Team Canada in the World Baseball Classic

 

What Smith does well

Fastball velocity and extension with ride are the key to Smith’s success. He can run his heater up to 96 and will sit 93-95. Thanks to his length and release, the fastball gets good late armside run and ‘ruse’ that makes it more difficult, not to mention the extension from it. It’s not far from being a plus pitch. Smith has a cutter and a slider. The cutter seems to bridge the gap between his fastball and slider in terms of movement profile and helps the two pitches play off each other better. His slider has late, tight break and the cutter is a nice middle pitch for him. 

Where Smith needs to improve

A little more consistency in his fastball, sitting 95-96 would probably take Smith’s heater to the next level. Both the cutter and slider both need work in terms of consistency and shape. His entire profile needs better control. Better control would now take Smith to a setup type reliever, but he has yet to show the level of control needed that would make him an even more serious major league relief prospect.

Intangibles

With being traded in 2020 out of high school and playing for Team Canada in the WBC, clearly teams think he can pitch. He’s a big, strong kid with a great family background. He was a decorated arm at Hawaii, 

Future

Smith’s rule 5 status is coming up in winter of 2024. Control and consistency are needed to take his profile to the next level. The stuff, especially the fastball, could be there for a major league bullpen role. The role is dependant on his control and consistency. Look for Smith to be in the mix for a bullpen role in Triple-A Columbus and hope to pitch his way onto the Guardians radar in 2023. If he is on their radar, that means he’s gained some control of his stuff. If not, he still has a decent shot at being an up and down reliever type in Cleveland or elsewhere, which is still good for a NDFA, even if it was in a strange year with a short draft. Consider him something of a sleeper pen arm with the way he can miss bats in the zone.

Role: 40 - low leverage relief