Freddy Smith - Director of Players/Operations - Baseball Coaches

Freddy Smith

Title:
Director of Players/Operations
Email:
fred.smith@csun.edu

Freddy Smith enters his second season as director of operations to the CSUN Baseball staff in 2025-26 after previously spending two seasons with the Matadors as director of player development.

Smith has enjoyed success coaching in summer baseball over his career. He has spent three seasons as field manager of the Willmar Stingers of the Northwoods League from 2022-24. Smith was named Manager of the Year in 2023 where the Stingers posted a franchise-best 51-16 record and finished with a No. 1 seed. He also led the Stingers to breaking a team record in runs scored in each of his three seasons including 589 in 2024. In his three seasons in Willmar, the team has gone 144-64.

Smith spent the 2024 season at Georgia State University working as the team's director of player development. On the year, Georgia State led the Sun Belt Conference with 105 home runs while ranking second in slugging percentage (.507).

Smith previously spent two seasons as a graduate assistant with Hawai'i from 2022-23. With the Rainbow Warriors, Smith primarily assisted with the infielders and hitters. In his two seasons on the bench in Manoa, Hawai'i posted a 57-44 record while the Bows posted single-season bests since joining The Big West in home runs (36), doubles (100), runs per game (6.3) and slugging percentage (.416).

Prior to Hawai'i, Smith served as director of player development for CSUN Baseball under then head coach Dave Serrano from 2020-21. Over those two seasons, CSUN posted a 31-24 overall record including a 10-5 record in the COVID-shortened 2020 campaign. In 2021, the Matadors led The Big West in stolen bases (60) and walks (198) in conference play while posting their best on-base percentage (.388) in 19 seasons and their best batting average (.296) in 11 seasons.

Smith also served as an infield coach for the Waterloo Bucks of the Northwoods League from 2020-21. He worked as infield and hitting coach as the team went 70-38 and won the Minnesota and Iowa Division Championship in 2020. As a hitting coach for the Bucks, the team was first in batting average (.277), on-base percentage (.388) and runs per game (6.9) in 2021.

A CSUN alum, Smith spent two seasons with the Matadors from 2016-17 where he batted a career .291 with 134 hits, 65 runs, 48 RBI, 23 walks, 22 doubles to go with a .970 fielding percentage.

As a junior, Smith occupied the leadoff spot in the lineup and finished second in The Big West in hits (75) while he topped CSUN in batting at a .314 clip. He was especially difficult to strikeout during the year as he struck out just 22 times in 239 at bats in 2016. Smith would post a 21-game hit streak as well in his junior season. He capped off his CSUN career by starting every game at shortstop as a senior, totaling 59 hits, 31 runs, 29 RBI, 12 doubles and four homers.