Reggie Smith addressed his induction into the Legends of Dodgers Baseball during a press conference on August 14, 2026.
Smith called the honor deeply meaningful. "It's very special. Um, you know, being able to share this with my family," he said. He noted that five of the ten Legends of Dodgers Baseball inductees are teammates from his era.
Smith recalled learning of the honor through a phone call from Lon Rosen while he was at home. "I was at home and uh Lon Rosen gave me the call and told me that I had been selected and I almost got a little emotional," he said. Smith also shared that his brother is 93 years old and his sister is 95 years old.
Asked about his career with the Dodgers, Smith noted he finished fourth in MVP voting twice during his time with the team, but said the recognition never troubled him. "It didn't bother me. I didn't feel like I was overlooked. I had a job to do and it was about trying to bring a world championship to uh Los Angeles," he stated. He added that he strove to live up to the standards of his hero, Jackie Robinson, who believed a life's value is measured by its impact on others. "A life is only as important as the impact that it has on other lives. And that was Jackie Robinson," he explained. Smith recalled meeting Robinson for the first time on the same field where he was now being honored, noting his boyhood hero never got the chance to play at Dodger Stadium.
Smith described Dave Roberts as being like a son to him, a bond formed while coaching Roberts during Pan-American Games qualifying for the Olympics. "Dave is like a son. You know, I first coached him uh during the uh Pan-American Games to qualify the US for the Olympics," he said. He also praised Shohei Ohtani, calling him almost a unicorn and a once-in-a-century player he enjoys watching.
Smith expressed hope that his late teammates Davey Lopes and Bill Russell, along with fellow infielder Steve Garvey from that era, will eventually be inducted as well, completing what he described as the longest-tenured infield foursome in baseball history. "I'm just hoping at some point that they include my um late roomy Dave Lopes and uh uh Bill Russell," he said.