Fiery Dodgers rookie Will Smith to catch fervent Rich Hill in debut

Will Smith, the Dodgers’ catching prospect who was called up Monday to replace the injured Austin Barnes on the roster, is 24 years old, which might surprise someone meeting him for the first time. He looks young enough to be a bat boy.

“Don’t let that little clean-shaven baby face fool you,” manager Dave Roberts said. “This guy is as tough as they come and a really good competitor.”

Smith, a first-round pick from Louisville in 2016, will be paired with one of baseball’s most competitive pitchers, left-hander Rich Hill, when he makes his first big league start, against the New York Mets on Tuesday night. It could be one emotionally charged battery.

“I’ve always been a very competitive person,” Smith said. “There’s nothing I hate more than losing and nothing I love more than winning. Though I don’t show my emotions, I feel like I play with a fiery edge, where I’m gonna destroy the pitcher on the mound or get these guys out at the plate.”

Smith is one of baseball’s best defensive catching prospects, but he made significant strides offensively this season, batting .290 with a .954 on-base-plus-slugging percentage, eight home runs, eight doubles and 28 RBIs in 38 games at triple-A Oklahoma City. He hit .233 with a .776 OPS, 20 homers and 59 RBIs in 98 games at Oklahoma City and double-A Tulsa in 2018.

“He’s doing a nice job using the whole field,” Roberts said. “There’s some strength in the hands. He’s shortened the swing. He’s cut down on the swing-and-miss at the fastball in the strike zone.”

Barnes, who was seven for 16 in his last five games to raise his average from .198 to .231, was put on the 10-day injured list after suffering a left groin strain Sunday at Pittsburgh.

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Though the injury is minor, “a three out of 10 as far as how much he felt it,” Roberts said, the Dodgers couldn’t afford to play too long without a reliable backup for 36-year-old Russell Martin, who has been sidelined already because of a lower-back injury.

“The right decision was to be proactive, to nip it right now and keep him healthy,” Roberts said of Barnes. “We can’t have something happen now and miss him for a couple of months.”

Kelly’s back, and so are boos

Reliever Joe Kelly, activated from the bereavement list, entered Monday night’s game with an 8-3 lead in the eighth inning and gave up a single to Todd Frazier, a two-run homer to Adeiny Hechavarria and a single to Dominic Smith.

Kelly, whose ERA rose to 8.83, was booed off the mound after being replaced by Dylan Floro.

To clear a roster spot for the right-hander Kelly, the Dodgers optioned left-hander Caleb Ferguson, who is 0-1 with a 5.94 ERA in 17 games, to triple A.

Short hops

Cody Bellinger’s strong throw home to nail the Mets’ Michael Conforto in the first inning Monday night was his major league-best sixth assist for a right fielder. … Center fielder Alex Verdugo, who was held out of Sunday’s game because of back tightness, returned to the starting lineup Monday.

mike.digiovanna@latimes.com

@MikeDiGiovanna