D1Baseball Top 100 Relief Pitchers: Preseason (Powered by @ChinookSeedery) 1. Jacob Dudan, @NCStateBaseball 2. Cole Tryba, @UCSB_Baseball 3. Matthew Matthijs, @DiamondHeels 4. Brian Curley, @BaseballUGA 5. Gabe Davis, @OSUBaseball

RHP Derrick Smith (@NCStateBaseball) has a chance to be one of the top relievers in the country this spring. After throwing just 3 innings as a Freshman, Smith last season pitched his way to a 4.55 ERA with 41 Ks to 11 BB across 29.2 IP. Allowed just 3 ER over his final 15 appearances. Earned an invitation to Team USA's Collegiate National Team. At 6'2" and 221-lbs, Smith has a high-waisted build with present strength and physicality in his lower-half. Noticeable side step leads into a high leg kick and a drop-and-drive delivery. Smith has a loose, whippy arm stroke and attacks from a low-3/4 slot. Noticeable wrist coil. Smith's FB sits in the 92-94 range, but has been up to 97. Throws both a 4 and a 2-seam. The former has some carry in the top-1/3 of the zone, while the latter flashes both arm-side run and a bit of sink. Low release height of around 5'8". Not a bat-misser right now and had a miss rate of just 12% in '24. Smith will need to hone in on and iron out the pitch's shape. The money-maker with Smith is his low-80s SL. Smith's feel for the pitch is highly advanced and he does a nice job of manipulating its shape. High-spin offering that consistently flashes sharp two-plane tilt. Will use it—and is effective—against both LHH and RHH. More of a gyro-y look against lefties with more depth than sweep, and against righties it will flash that more signature two-plane look. Generated an eye-popping 61% miss rate (including a 34% IZ miss rate) and 34% chase rate in '24 and held opposing hitters to a minuscule .051 average. Easy 60. Smith's command can be scattered at times, which can partially be attributed to him falling off a bit towards the 1B side. A reliever all the way, Smith profiles as a 4th-7th rounder this July.

New Year, same goal.

Happy Birthday, @DudanJacob!