The Cincinnati Reds signed first baseman Dominic Smith to a major league contract on Thursday.
In other moves Thursday, the Reds placed outfielder Jake Fraley on the 10-day injured list with a right knee sprain, and designated right-hander Brooks Kriske for assignment.
Smith was released by the Boston Red Sox on Tuesday, four days after he was designated for assignment. The former first-round draft pick became expendable when Boston reinstated first baseman Triston Casas from the 60-day injured list last week.
The reported addition of Smith will help the Reds address the loss of versatile infielder Jeimer Candelario, who was placed on the 10-day injured list Tuesday with a fractured left big toe.
Candelario, 30, has made 53 starts at third base, 32 at designated hitter and 26 at first base this season.
Smith, 29, batted .237 with six home runs, 34 RBIs and a .706 OPS in 83 games for the Red Sox.
Boston signed Smith on May 1 after he opted out of a minor league deal with the Tampa Bay Rays, who had released him one day earlier.
The New York Mets selected Smith with the 11th overall pick of the 2013 MLB Draft. Smith played for New York from 2017-22, finishing 13th in the National League MVP voting in 2020 when he posted career bests by slashing .316/.377/.616.
In 683 career games for the Mets, Washington Nationals (2023) and Red Sox, Smith batted .247 with 64 homers and 259 RBIs.
The move on Fraley was retroactive to Wednesday, when he was a late scratch from the lineup against the host Toronto Blue Jays.
Fraley, 29, is batting .271 with three home runs and 23 RBIs in 92 games this season. In parts of six seasons for the Seattle Mariners (2019-21) and Reds, he is batting .245 with 39 homers and 153 RBIs in 368 games.
Kriske, 30, did not play for Cincinnati this season. He was 5-0 with a 3.10 ERA, 29 walks and 72 strikeouts in 49 1/3 innings over 42 relief appearances for Triple-A Louisville.
He signed as a free agent with the Reds in December after parts of three seasons with the New York Yankees (2020-21), Baltimore Orioles (2021) and Kansas City Royals (2023). Kriske is a career 2-1 with an 11.22 ERA in 21 2/3 innings over 20 relief appearances.
–Field Level Media
