The secret of the Royals' Will Smith, baseball's good luck charm

NEW YORK Royals reliever Will Smith hasnt thrown a pitch since Aug.

25, but in the days after his club eliminated the Baltimore Orioles and clinched a spot in the American League Division Series, his phone lit up with a few messages.

Some of my friends have asked me: Where do I keep the horseshoe at?' Smith said Friday at Yankee Stadium.

Advertisement For the record: Smith, 35, does not own a horseshoe, though he does possess three World Series rings, which he keeps at home in a safe and pulls out once a year, when the offseason begins.

The championship hardware was earned in succession across the past three Octobers, an individual dynasty unparalleled in baseball history.

Smith won the 2021 World Series as the closer of the Braves , helped the Astros hoist to the crown in 2022, and then claimed his third straight title last season as a reliever for the Rangers .

No player had ever won three straight World Series with three different teams.

Which makes his 2024 season the equivalent of a championship heat check.

THE FINAL OUT! Congrats to the World Series Champion @Braves ! pic.twitter.com/4NeUl7YV3b FOX Sports: MLB (@MLBONFOX) November 3, 2021 Last winter, Smith signed a free-agent contract with the Kansas City Royals, who were coming off a franchise-record 106 losses.

Ten months later, the club is back in the ALDS for the first time in nine years, three series victories away from a Will Smith four-peat.

Surely, his agents phone must be blowing up with general managers trying to get the jump on baseballs most valuable player? Guys always mess with me about it, Smith said.

Theyre like: Wherever youre going, Im coming with you.

But no teams have actually reached out.

Yet.

The odds of the Smith Triple are minuscule.

Before Smith, just two players had ever reached the World Series with three different teams in three years: Don Baylor and Eric Hinske, both veteran sluggers.

Baylor reached the World Series in 1986 with the Red Sox , won a championship in 1987 with the Twins and reached the World Series again in 1988 with the As.

Hinske achieved three straight with the Red Sox, Rays and Yankees in 2007, 2008 and 2009, respectively.

He won titles in 2007 and 2009.

Advertisement Smith is fighting even longer odds after the Royals dropped Game 1 to the Yankees, 6-5, Saturday night.

Kansas City, however, can even the series when it resumes on Monday night in the Bronx.

Smith, who is not on the series roster, will not be able to help on the field.

Its a familiar position for the veteran reliever, who signed a one-year, $5 million contract last winter in hopes of earning a spot in the back of the Royals bullpen.

But after a shaky start in April, Smith lost the closers job and saw his role diminish.

He went on the injured list in late August with back spasms.

Not that Royals general manager J.J.

Picollo regrets the signing.

To the contrary, in fact.

The reason we wanted to acquire Will, it was really because of what he would bring from a leadership standpoint his experience in the playoffs, Picollo said.

And we know him very well.

When youre talking about trying to build a culture of winners, Will is the epitome of it.

Drafted by the Angels in 2008, Smith was traded to the Royals in 2010 in a deadline deal that sent infielder Alberto Callaspo to Los Angeles.

He made his major-league debut for the club in 2012, as a collection of young players coalesced in Kansas City.

But he was traded to Milwaukee for outfielder Nori Aoki before the 2014 season, just missing out on consecutive World Series runs.

It was cool watching them do that, Smith said.

But youre like, dang man, I just missed it.

I got traded.

It sounds funny now, but when Smith joined the Giants in 2016 after their dynasty was over and then watched another former team the Brewers go on a long playoff run in 2018, he began to wonder.

Was it him? Im like, maybe Im a bad luck charm, Smith said.

Everywhere I leave, they start going to the playoffs and winning.

Smith paused.

I dont believe that anymore.

Known mostly for his goofy energy and gregarious persona, Smiths greatest contribution to the 2024 Royals came not as a reliever but as a recruiter.

When he agreed to sign with the Royals last December, he texted reliever Chris Stratton , who was also in the Rangers bullpen last year.

When Stratton came on board, Smith turned his focus to starting pitcher Seth Lugo , whom he did not actually know personally.

Advertisement My agent told me that J.J.

(Picollo) asked if Will could text me, Lugo explained.

According to Smith, the message was simple.

I just said, Hey man, would be happy to have you in KC.

We got a good thing going.

Ive respected your game.

Yadda, yadda, yadda.

Smiths leadership presence has continued as hes battled injury and lost his role.

When the Royals were scuffling in September, Smith tried to ease the tension.

When reliever Lucas Erceg was acquired from the As before the deadline, it was Smith who offered the most memorable greeting.

I think the first thing he said to me when I introduced myself to him is, Hey, Im the strongest guy on the team, Erceg recalled.

So immediately it was just like a breath of fresh air.

One of the oddities of Smiths championship run is that his role has changed each year.

He made 11 scoreless appearances for the Braves in 2021, including the final three outs against the Astros.

He wasnt on the roster for the Astros the next fall but collected a ring nonetheless.

Last year, he appeared in two World Series games for the Rangers.

This year, hes tried to impart a clear message to the Royals.

If you dont believe youre gonna win the World Series, you never will, Smith said.

Its at least starting with that.

These young guys believe in themselves.

And thats what they do.

We believe we can win.

The lesson, Smith says, came into focus across the past three years.

About five years ago, he wondered if his team would ever make the World Series.

Now? Its like, were going , Smith said.

(Top photo: Dilip Vishwanat / Getty Images).

This article has been shared from the original article on theathleticuk, here is the link to the original article.