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Personality might be a constant.  But humans change behavior and react in different ways all the time.  My current meme on this subject is:  It matters where you start from.
Back in 1986 I moved to Raleigh and my friend Jim (who carried a 180 average), invited me to bowl with him on a league, (my first).  Jim, who had bowled since age 6, coached me.  After averaging 125ish for the first half of the league, I made a plateau leap and ran about a 144 in the second half.  In a handicap league this is massive.  With me bowling 15-20 pins over average in the second half, we won the second half and made the final roll-off -- my first.
In the finals, all three of my teammates were bowling great.  We should have crushed the opposition.  Only thing is - I was beyond terrible.  I failed to break 100 in EITHER of the first two games.  It was without a doubt the worst bowling night of my life.  Funny thing is ... I didn't "feel" nervous.  I had anticipated nerves and worked to relax and maybe I overdid it.  Whatever the case, I was a complete disaster.
Then, in the middle of the third game, I strung three strikes together, (my only ones of the night).  That was enough, (thanks to the rest of the team kicking butt), and we won that league.  But, the demonstrated to me on a very personal level just how unpredictable results can be for 'newbies' to an experience.
The point here is that my implosion in my first bowling final was never repeated.  I went on to win other leagues with Jim.  I even became anchor bowler for some teams when my average climbed to 170, often (but not always) coming through in the clutch.  But, that first disaster didn't define my play for the next 20 years. 
I don't know if Smoak will succeed in the majors or not.  But, I do know that one should not assume that simply because the first time a player is put in a position and fails that this means you should never revisit the situation.  Michael Jordan was cut from his first HS basketball team. 
Figgins may or may not bounce back.  But his 2009 and 2011 seasons were both produced by the same guy.  Mental state is not a constant.  It is not only impacted by what is happening today, but also by what happened yesterday.  There is probably not player on the team who could possibly benefit more from the mental reset of a new season than Figgins.  Yeah, it's probably too late and he's too old to expect much.  But, maybe low expectations are precisely what Figgy needs to put up a redemption season.