Cam Smith sets Pelicans record with homers in 5 straight

Cam Smith watched his latest home run leave Joseph P. Riley, Jr. Ballpark and had just one thing to say to himself before running around the bases:

“Wow.”

The dinger extended his streak to homers in five consecutive games during his first full month as a professional with Single-A Myrtle Beach, becoming the first player in club history to reach the mark. The solo shot helped secure the Pelicans’ 4-1 win over the Charleston RiverDogs on Saturday night. It was also a sign that Smith is on the right path in his adjustment from playing at Florida State University to pro baseball.

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There have been ups and downs for Smith since being selected 14th overall in the 2024 Draft by the Cubs. Before the beginning of his home run streak on Tuesday, the Cubs’ No. 8 prospect had strung together just four hits in nine Single-A appearances.

"You know that corny saying of, ‘Trusting the process?’ I've kind of lived by that, and it keeps you down to earth and it keeps you grounded,” Smith said. “So I trust my abilities and hope I'll get lucky someday. And it's been pretty good so far.”

Maybe part of it is luck, but Smith has also been doing his part, making adjustments to his at-bats.

“I would say the main thing was timing,” Smith said. “That's always something that us ball players have to get used to when you get back into the flow of things.

"And it was a slow process, but we're here now.”

Smith is now batting .311 with a 1.125 OPS and has recorded three multihit performances in his recent five-game heater. Earlier in the week, after just his second straight game at Single-A with dinger, the third baseman said he had no words.

“I never even thought I could get close to what I'm doing right now, but it's pretty cool to see,” he said.

Some players -- especially ones with the track record that Smith compiled during his time with the Seminoles -- would have looked at the results from earlier in the month, but Smith didn’t. The everyday nature of pro ball, which he enjoys, has helped him shift his focus on improving instead of focusing on the negative.

"It's been awesome being able to play every day. That's the best thing for us ball players. We have a short amount of time to think about our performance, as opposed to playing at school," Smith said. "There were some up and downs throughout this whole process -- I've just kind of taken it day by day, not trying to look at the results."

Smith enters a Cubs system brimming with talent. Chicago was one of five clubs to have six Top 100 overall prospects in MLB Pipeline's recent update and ranked eighth in their in-season farm system rankings. He is aware of the attention he receives as a first-round Draft pick, particularly joining a franchise that has national appeal.

“You have attention, but at the same time you're the small fish in the big pond,” Smith said of the difference between college and the pros. “These guys have been here for a long time and been playing at this level for a long time. So I lean on them and allow them to help me through this process and guide me.

“[Florida State head baseball coach] Link Jarrett helped me a lot with maturity and professionalism and the way you go about yourself on and off the field. So I definitely brought that here to Myrtle Beach and with the Pelicans. So I’m grateful for that and I think it’s the right way to go about business.”

Smith, a longtime participant in the MLB Develops program, saw everything click for him this past year with Florida State. After posting a solid .843 OPS in 2023, his numbers skyrocketed this spring with a .387/.488/.654 slash line in which he walked nearly as many times as he struck out, staking his claim to being a first-round talent.

“Even through all the success, I feel like I'm still very humble, because it's not me doing this work, it's the man above,” he said. “So I have to remember not to get too wise in my own eyes. So that's what's keeping me grounded. And I'm enjoying it. I'm not taking it for granted, but at the same time you shoot to be even-keeled throughout the whole process.”