Playing hard comes naturally to Smith

There was a foul pop in the Mets-Reds game at Citi Field on Saturday night that bore the dreaded label of“meaningless .” But Mets buildin g-block first baseman Dominic Smith ran to the wall with little regard for his body and made the catch.

To Smith, it was just what you do.

“Just doing what you can to help the team win ballgames,” Smith said.

To manager Terry Collins, it was an example of “playing the right way.” And it’ s what he wants from his young guys for what remains in the 2017 nightmare season.

“To know and learn how to win and have that be the priority makes you a better baseball player,” Collins said. “I’ve said losing can be as contagious as winning can be, where you are satisfied with, ‘Well, I did my job today. Somebody else screwed up.’ That’s not the mindset we want here. Each and every guy has to go out and do his job. This is a team. We win together, we lose together.”

Collins sees those attributes in Smith, who is having all the anticipated growing pains, but has hit f ive homers since his Aug. 11 call-up. He’s doing it the right way.

“The catch he made resonates that. Tough play against the wall. Didn’t shy away from anything. When you see that kind of energy, that kind of effort, you say, ‘Look, he’s playing the game the way it’ s supposed to be played ,’” Collins said. “We have been eliminated, [but] they’re not backing down. That’s what we’re asking them to do, to continue to play the game the right way. Dom’s doing that.”

The 22-year-old Smith seemed a little confused that his catch gained such notice.

“I’ve been doing stuff like that my whole career,” he said.

Plus, it is what you are supposed to do.

“It’s not always about going 4-for-4 or four home runs. It’s the l i tt l e things that matter. The young guys, we’re up here trying to learn,” Smith said. “We’re pulling for each other and we’re trying to play for each other. It’s about playing selfless. We play for each other, we play for the guy next to us. We’re going to scrap away and chip away and play the game hard.”

But yeah, it’s a little tougher at this level. Every pitcher you see in the majors would qualify as a minor league ace.

“Everything is just better overall. The pitchers, the defense, scouting reports. The way they position players, the way they pitch us,” Smith said. “Everything is just more advanced. You’ve got to continuously make adjustments. In the minor leagues, you don’t have to make adjustments as quickly. Up here, you’ve got to make them on the f ly. It’s just constantly having to learn and make adjustments. That is probably the biggest eye-opening factor.”

But it’ s made easier when you do things the right way.