A Hidden Gem

Name: Bryn Smith

Card Company: Score

Year: 1989

Team: Montreal Expos

Bats/Throws: R

Ht: 6'2

Bryn Smith is a rather unsuspecting looking guy, the type of guy that you wouldn’t expect to have the career he did. While he may not be in the Hall of Fame that didn’t stop him from posting some very solid numbers in his 13-year career. So, since hardly any of my readers have heard of him, let’s begin the analysis on the surprisingly productive career of Bryn Smith.

Bryn Smith was originally selected in the 49th round in 1973 MLB draft by the St. Louis Cardinals. However, he would elect to not sign, instead playing for Allan Hancock College. In 1974, he would be signed as an undrafted free agent by the Baltimore Orioles, before being traded to Montreal in 1977. Eventually debuting as a September call-up in 1981, he would pick up his first career win playing in only 7 games. After a brief stint in the minors in 1982 he would be called back up to the Expos as a bullpen arm finishing his first full season with a 4.20 ERA. He would spend most of the 1983 season coming out of the bullpen as well, before earning a spot as a starting pitcher. He finished the 1983 campaign with a 6-11 record but posted an impressive 2.49 ERA.

He would spend the next 6-years with the Expos as a starter posting a solid 72-56 record with a 3.34 ERA. His best season would come in 1985, as he would finish with a 18-5 record, and a 2.91 ERA all while pitching 222.1 innings. However, no matter what Bryn Smith did he never was given a chance to be an all-star. It didn’t help that he was competing for votes against the like of Nolan Ryan, Fernando Valenzuela, Dwight Gooden, Goose Gossage. But he got beat out by LaMarr Hoyt who had a decent year with a 16-8 record with a 3.47 ERA, but didn’t have as good of a year as Bryn Smith. However, Hoyt played in San Diego while Smith played in Montreal, so maybe that explains the snub. In baseball, there will always be players like Bryn Smith, players that out play their big city counterparts but will be passed over due to their location.

After the 1989 season Smith would be granted free agency, eventually signing on with the St. Louis Cardinals. He would go on to play three season with Cardinals posting a 25-19 record with 4.06 ERA. The thing is that Smith wasn’t immune from the occasional bad season, but what made him valuable was his ability to bounce back after a rough season. After he posted an ERA over 4.00 the previous year he responded with an average ERA of 3.16 in 1983,1988,1991, nearly an entire run less. Now he did have an ERA over 4.00 in his final season with the Cardinals in 1992, only appearing in 13 games that year. And after the 1992 season he was once again a free agent looking for a new team that would take a chance on a pitcher with a 37-year old arm.

However, the newly founded Colorado Rockies franchise was looking for pitchers and they scooped up the veteran pitcher. I guess the Rockies thought that Smith was due for another bounce back year, that or they were desperate. It started out promising enough though, as he would go on to notch the first ever victory for the Colorado Rockies on April 9th, 1993 against the Expos. However, the combination of an old arm and the thin air of Denver didn’t mix after he posted an ERA of 8.49 in just 11 games for the Rockies. He was released later that year by the Rockies, and shortly after that he retired from baseball.

Bryn Smith finished his career with a 108-94 record (.535 winning percentage) a 3.53 ERA all while averaging close to 200 innings per year. All in all, he had a very productive 13-year MLB career and did it without a lot of recognition. But that’s why I’m here, to make sure that players like Bryn Smith get the recognition they deserve.

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