Dylan Crews had a stellar career with the LSU Tigers, which was aided during his freshman year by Washington’s new head baseball coach, Eddie Smith.
During the 2020-21 season, Smith was LSU’s hitting coach and worked very closely with Crews, helping him earn National Freshman of the Year honors from Perfect Game. He posted ridiculous numbers during his first season at the college level, blasting 18 home runs (a school record for freshmen) with 42 runs batted in, 39 walks, and 12 stolen bases.
He also tallied a .362 batting average and an 1.116 OPS, which also earned him a spot on Perfect Game’s Second Team All-America. Crews would go on to be the No. 2 overall pick in the 2023 MLB draft by the Washington Nationals and is ranked by MLB Pipeline as the No. 4 prospect in the sport, and he gives a lot of credit to Washington’s new coach for his development into one of college baseball’s best hitters.
“Working with coach Smith my freshman year in college was a great opportunity that I had and it’s something that I will remember for the rest of my career,” Crews said.
“The energy and attitude that he brought every single day to the field molded our team into one of the best physically and mentally prepared teams in the country. I think the best thing that I got out of my freshman year when working with him was how to ‘flip the switch’ when arriving to the field. Coach Smith put hours of effort into preparation for us players to have the best opportunity to win every game.”