Former Toronto Blue Jay Justin Smoak had a lot to say about his former teammate Kazuma Okamoto
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Victor William
Jan 7, 2026 (4:21 PM)
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Photo credit: Dan Hamilton-Imagn Images
Former Toronto Blue Jays Justin Smoak had a lot to say during a recent interview regarding his former teammate Yazuma Okamoto.
That line, «stupid pop,» is the kind of baseball truth you trust, because it comes from a guy who lived it. Smoak spent years in Toronto, then crossed the ocean and saw Okamoto up close in Japan.
«He has way more pop than I had. He has stupid pop,» Justin Smoak, who was an All-Star with 38 homers for the Blue Jays in 2017, told the Toronto Star, according to Mike Wilner. «He's a good hitter and he doesn't have a big swing. He'll swing and miss, but at the same time, he's going to miss balls (and they'll) still go to the gap or off the wall. He'll miss balls that are still homers.» -Justin Smoak
Smoak played for the Yomiuri Giants in 2021, the same organization Okamoto has called home since he was a teenager. The Giants even note Okamoto joined them as a first-round pick in 2014, so this isn't some late-bloom gamble.
Justin Smoak scouts Kazuma Okamoto power
Smoak told the Toronto Star, as relayed by Mike Wilner, that Okamoto has «way more pop» than he ever did, even without a big swing. The best part is the detail, he can miss pitches and still send them to the gap or over the wall.
That tracks with what the numbers say in Japan. Okamoto leaves NPB with 248 homers and a .277 average across 11 seasons, and he still hit .327 with 15 homers in only 69 games last year.
Smoak also gave the one warning that matters, velocity is different here. In Japan you might see a couple 95-plus arms per team, but in MLB it can feel like the whole bullpen touches it.
The Blue Jays are paying for that upside with a four-year, $60 million deal that includes a $5 million signing bonus and no opt-outs. If Okamoto's power translates quickly, that contract can look friendly in a hurry.
Smoak is a pretty good messenger on power, considering he made the 2017 All-Star team and popped 38 homers for the Blue Jays that season. When a guy like that says the new bat has more thump, you listen.
Okamoto still has to handle MLB pitching plans and the daily grind, but this is the kind of endorsement that cuts through winter noise. Now I just want to see that «stupid pop» show up the first time he turns on a fastball in April.
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| POLL | ||
JANVIER 7|370 ANSWERS Former Toronto Blue Jay Justin Smoak had a lot to say about his former teammate Kazuma Okamoto Do you trust Justin Smoak's "stupid pop" read on Kazuma Okamoto for the Toronto Blue Jays? | ||
| Trust it | 151 | 40.8 % |
| Needs time | 67 | 18.1 % |
| Immediate star | 20 | 5.4 % |
| Wait and see | 132 | 35.7 % |
| List of polls | ||