The deal was announced before Wednesday’s game against the Reds. It had been in the works since before GM Josh Byrnes was fired on June 22 and it came together in the last few days.
Smith will be paid $6 million in 2015 and $6.75 million in 2016. The Padres hold a $7 million option in 2017, or a $250,000 buyout.
Smith is getting $4.5 million this season. He was obtained in an offseason trade with the Athletics.
The Padres started the day in third place in the NL West at 37-47, 10 1/2 games behind the Giants. They haven’t had a winning season since 2010, when they won 90 games but missed the playoffs.
“I wouldn’t have signed if I didn’t think we could win now,” Smith said. “This season has been tough but there’s still a lot of season left, there’s still a lot of good players here.”
CRYING IN THEIR BEER
While the Blue Jays celebrated Edwin Encarnacion’s game-ending, three-run homer Wednesday, the Brewers were left with a more sobering thought: Not only was this their third consecutive defeat, it produced the first series in which the Brewers have been swept.
“Today was a tough game to lose,” manager Ron Roenicke said.
It’s not a surprise that Encarnacion would be a hero. He is tied for the major league lead in homers at 26 with White Sox rookie Jose Abreu and the Orioles’ Nelson Cruz. Make a mistake, and he’ll make a pitcher pay for it.
“(Brewers reliever Brandon Kintzler) hanged it, I banged it,” Encarnacion said, calling his walk-off shot “the best moment you can have for any player.”
The Jays are atop the AL East, and the Brewers are first in the NL Central despite the sweep.
MAUER’S GONE
Joe Mauer’s absence is another blow to the Twins, who are planted in the AL Central basement and now without their best player until after the All-Star break.
The team said Wednesday it was placing Mauer on the 15-day disabled list because of a right oblique strain, an injury that laid him low Tuesday. How bad was it?
“It was pretty painful. I’ve never been shot before but it felt like I was shot,” Mauer said. “It felt worse this morning. After that swing, I knew it was pretty bad. But I tried to stay in there with hopes it would feel better but it didn’t.”
Mauer missed time earlier this season with a sore back. Manager Ron Gardenhire told reporters it wasn’t a new injury; Mauer had been babying it for a while but thought it was a back flare-up.
In the at-bat in which he was injured, resulting in a double, Mauer improved his best hitting streak of the season to 12 games. Reports say he had done extra work to boost his season totals, which stand at .271 with two homers and 28 RBIs in 76 games.
With Mauer gone, Chris Colabello was summoned from Triple-A Rochester.
CURLY W’S
Matt Williams has been around long enough to know managing isn’t easy. Even so, the snarl he faces with the Nationals would be enough to have him pulling out his hair. Good thing he’s bald.
Keep an eye on the internal strife Williams is handling, which has Bryce Harper at its center. Harper is on record as favoring changes to the outfield that likely don’t sit well with veteran players, according to media reports.
Harper’s recent pronouncement: Keep Ryan Zimmerman in left field and play Harper in center.
Williams might find that a hard sell for Denard Span, who is the current center fielder. It’s the right move for Zimmerman, though, whose arm problems forced his switch to the outfield.
Harper, usually in left, is only 21, has a checkered injury past and has yet to play 140 games in a season, Ken Rosenthal notes for Fox Sports. No matter how good or how popular he is, he hasn’t earned the right to pop off about the lineup.
Zimmerman came off the DL last month after a rehab stint that included a crash course in outfield play. After Zimmerman started at third in Harper’s return from the DL on Monday, Harper fielded reporters’ questions and supported having Zimmerman in the outfield and Anthony Rendon at third. Rendon played second on Monday.
Harper’s assessment of the lineup:
“Rendon’s a good third baseman. He should be playing third. We’ve got one of the best second basemen in the league in Danny Espinosa. Of course, we want the best-hitting lineup in there. I think Rendon playing third and Zim playing left is something that would be good for this team. I think that should be what’s happening.”
Williams said he spoke with Harper on Tuesday, and he didn’t seem displeased with Harper’s lineup critique.
“I got Bryce’s back in every way." Williams said, per The Washington Post. The skipper added: “He’s going to hit in different spots in the lineup, and he’s OK with that. And he’s going to play in different spots in the outfield, and he’s OK with that, too. I know there’s a lot made of it, and there’s a lot of discussion about it. But he and I are good. There’s no rift. ”
Still, Harper’s comments could plant the seeds for clubhouse discontent. And that’s something the Nats can do without as they battle the Braves for first in the NL East.
Contributing: Ray Slover, The Associated Press
