GLENDALE, Ariz. — As a White Sox assistant pitching coach and briefly a teammate of right-hander Shane Smith at Wake Forest, Bobby Hearn has a unique perspective about what’s going on with the staff and Smith, who has been tabbed as the Opening Day starter March 26 in Milwaukee.
Smith came out of high school in Massachusetts with an injury to his right shoulder and had to overcome that and an elbow problem during his years at Wake Forest. Consequently, the Brewers signed him as an undrafted free agent in 2021, beginning his MLB journey.
‘‘Since I graduated from high school, my baseball career has never been the same,’’ Smith said after the Opening Day announcement Sunday. ‘‘I’ve never been on any prospect lists. I’ve never been a top-30 prospect for any team.’’
Before the Sox played the Rockies in a Cactus League game Monday at Camelback Ranch, Hearn explained the dynamics of Smith’s statement. At 29, Hearn is every bit as young as he looks.
‘‘If you’re not a good player, you have to coach early,’’ he quipped.
But really.
‘‘We both definitely had our ups and downs in college,’’ Hearn said about his relationship with Smith. ‘‘He had a pretty tough couple of years because of injuries, starting with the shoulder and an elbow after that. Some tough moments for him. It’s really cool to see him persevere through that.’’
The Brewers, however, determined Smith had enough stuff when they signed him.
‘‘When he was at Wake Forest and he stepped on campus, you could see the talent,’’ Hearn said. ‘‘He threw hard. Unfortunately, he just couldn’t stay on the field. It was just one of those opportunities where Milwaukee saw something and decided to take a shot on him.’’
But not enough of a shot to keep him in the organization. After three seasons in their minor-league system, the Brewers left Smith unprotected, and the Sox selected him in the Rule 5 Draft in 2024. That comes with some strings attached.
The cost to the drafting team is $100,000 for the pick, who must remain in the majors for the entire next season. In Smith’s case, that was with the Sox in 2025. If not, he must be offered back to the originating team at $50,000. Alternatively, the drafting team could arrange a player swap to keep him.
Smith excelled, winning seven of his first 10 decisions and earning the nod as the Sox’ sole selection to the American League All-Star squad. He was off to the races, and Hearn arrived during the offseason as an assistant under new pitching coach Zach Bove.
‘‘We stayed in touch, relatively,’’ Hearn said of his relationship with Smith. ‘‘Obviously, now we’re in day-to-day communication. There are a lot of similarities to what he did in college, which has been funny but also cool to see. His preparation is unmatched. He took that kind of care he was doing daily to another level.’’
Of course, Smith is not Hearn’s only pitcher to cultivate in his role with the team. The Sox have yet to designate the rest of their starting rotation behind Smith, although Davis Martin, Anthony Kay, Sean Burke and Sean Newcomb seem to be the obvious candidates.
Hearn has found working under manager Will Venable and Bove to be smooth. He also has found a pitching staff that is still under construction.
‘‘The culture on the baseball staff has been phenomenal,’’ Hearn said. ‘‘I’ve had a relationship with Zach, but Will has made it incredibly easy to join the group and be yourself. We’ve had a lot of ideas bouncing off the walls. Everyone has a voice. Everyone has an opinion. It’s a great group.’’
And about molding the staff, he added: ‘‘There’s a ton of talent here. There are a lot of young guys continuing to establish themselves. You want them to feel comfortable. You want them to feel confident, but you need to be very direct with them about what they need to do to get better. I’ve been pretty impressed with their ability to navigate and manage that.’’
