Tim Smith Hones His Focus on Baseball

As a three-sport athlete at Millis High School, Tim Smith found himself suiting up for basketball, baseball and football for the Mohawks. He began shooting baskets at a very young age and began playing the sport year-round, however, as he got older, he let go of basketball to concentrate on his first love – baseball. Then during his junior campaign on the gridiron, he tore his labrum, and his football season was done.
Original diagnostics showed that he most likely wasn’t going to see any action that spring on the baseball diamond, but Smith had different ideas.
“They told me that I would probably be out about six months, but I had a really good physical therapist and four or five months later, I was good to go,” the Millis senior said. “The football injury slowed my baseball season down, and at first, I wasn’t fully confident in my arm, so I started playing fall ball for the first time to build up my stamina.”
Returning ahead of schedule allowed Smith to take part in the Mohawks season.
“Tim wasn’t even expected back for the baseball season, but he worked extremely hard and was able to make it back to play the entire season,” Millis Coach Mike Carter said.
With his injury slowing down his junior campaign on the diamond, Smith decided to take precautions in the sport he loves the most.
“When I got hurt in football, it put me behind the eight ball for the baseball season,” the first baseman said. “I didn’t want that to happen again, so I didn’t play football this past season, but instead concentrated on baseball.”
Smith began playing first base early in his career. He also dabbled at the hot corner as well, but felt that first was a better fit for him, especially by the time he got to high school, where the Mohawks already had themselves a capable third baseman on the team.
“I think it was around third or fourth grade when I first started playing first base and just stuck with it,” Smith said. “I played the position well before I actually had a first baseman mitt. In fact, I originally found my first mitt at the ball park.”
Upon entering Millis High School, Smith found himself fielding ground balls for the Junior Varsity team his first two seasons, but with only two games remaining in the regular season during his sophomore year he got the call up to the Varsity team. In his very first Varsity game, he went 3-3 at the plate with a RBI in a 2-1 win over Dover Sherborn, and in the season finale, he had two big hits against Pope John Paul and his confidence was soaring.
“His sophomore campaign, we were struggling as a team, and his presence in the lineup rejuvenated us and gave us life again in the lineup. He’s a professional player and he helped up with that big win over DS,” Carter said. “He has an impressive mentality with a great mindset of the game. He’ll take any advice that is given to him and work on improving it.”
The senior first baseman will find himself batting in the heart of Coach Carter’s lineup either at the third hole or the cleanup position.
“I’m a contact hitter with some power, but I’m not going to be hitting any 400 foot homers anytime soon,” he said. “I would like to work on my swing and improve my power hitting.”
Coach Carter believes that Smith has come a long way at the plate since his freshman year at Millis.
“He really has come a long way in terms of power and has worked hard to develop his swing,” the Coach said. “We are going to lean on him heavily this year.”
As Millis battles for the right to get back to the State Tournament, Smith is hoping that when once his high school career comes to an end that he can still continue to play baseball on the next level. Smith will be attending Westfield State College next fall majoring in Criminal Justice, but he is hoping that he’ll be playing baseball for the Division 3 Owls as a walk on.