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The Saitama Seibu Lions came off a disastrous 2021, where it was their first last place finish in 42 years. An overhaul took place with every import player being let go.
Another former Oakland A's player emerged as part of the new group of foreign players hoping to make an impact in 2022.
Burch Smith
Tenures: 2020-2021 with the Oakland Athletics, 2022 with the Seibu Lions
Statistics with Oakland: 37 games, (3-1), 55.1 IP, 3.81 FIP, 1.229 WHIP, 6.7 K/9
Statistics with Lions: 20 games, (1-0), 38.1 IP, 3.29 ERA, 1.146 WHIP, 8.7 K/9
Born and raised through several areas in Texas, Burch Smith worked his way up initially through the Junior College path before transferring to the University of Oklahoma. He was even drafted in the 49th round by the Cleveland Indians in 2009 and 20th round in 2010 even though he didn't sign.
The San Diego Padres drafted him in the 11th round of 2011 and he made his MLB debut in 2013 being called straight up from AA with 10 appearances.
After not making an MLB game in 2014, he was a piece of a larger three-team trade that sent him to the Tampa Bay Rays which involved Wil Myers, Jose Castillo and Steven Souza.
Smith underwent Tommy John surgery to miss the 2015 season and only appeared for the Rays at the minor league level in 2017.
He became a Rule 5 draft pick of the Mets I'm December 2017 and was traded to the Kansas City Royals, staying on their MLB roster for the entire 2018 season. In 38 games, he started six of them with a 1-6 record and 6.92 ERA. The Royals designated him for assignment in 2018.
Smith entered 2019 on a minor league contract with the Milwaukee Brewers. He made seven MLB appearances before the team designated him for assignment again.
The San Francisco Giants claimed him off waivers in August of 2019 where he recorded a 2.08 ERA in 10 games. He was once again designated for assignment after the season.
With the assignment time nearly expired, the Giants traded Smith to the Oakland Athletics for cash considerations. This trade was an interesting footnote in history because it was the first time sending any major league player in a trade for both teams involved since 1990, when Darren Lewis was swapped for Ernest Riles.
Previously there were waiver claims and minor league transactions, but it broke the longest trade drought among any two MLB teams.
With Oakland in a shortened 2020, Smith looked promising out of the bullpen to take innings and be a versatile reliever. However, a strained forearm cut his season short and he only appeared in six games.
For 2021, Smith was part of a bullpen by committee in Oakland and took mostly medium to low leverage innings. He recorded a 5.40 ERA in 43.1 innings of work and was designated for assignment in the final month of the season.
By 2022, the Seibu Lions called his name and he hoped to get a fresh start. He already had a friendship connection with the outgoing Zach Neal as he found as much information as he could before coming to Japan.
A late arrival with no spring training, Smith made one of the best debuts for any foreigner coming to Japan. He threw seven innings without a hit allowed and only one walk. The Lions took him out due to a higher pitch count and lower velocity, where it was broken up in the eighth inning.
Smith success was short lived as he spent two months injured with a right arm discomfort. He came back shortly again only to have COVID-19 and be off the ichi-gun roster again.
With Kaima Taira, Tatsushi Masuda and Yoshinobu Mizukami struggling in August, the Lions asked Smith to take some load in relief. He had a strong outing once with three relief innings and ate up the slack a few starters couldn't pitch.
This was also short lived as he couldn't retain his role as a setup man while Taira and Mizukami returned to form.
When the year was over, Smith entered with uncertainty. The Lions presented an offer, but both sides couldn't come to an agreement as Smith wanted to be a starting pitcher and the team preferred him as a reliever.
For 2023, Smith signed with the Hanwha Eagles of KBO, reuniting him with Lions teammate Brian O'Grady as they were on the same team once again. His time in Korea was short lived where he only appeared in one ichi-gun game before a shoulder injury took him out in the third inning.
The Eagles released him in late April after they found a replacement for their import slot on the roster. He appeared in 12 games for the Gigantes del Cibao in the Dominican Winter Leagues at the conclusion of 2023.
For 2024, he signed a minor league deal with the Tampa Bay Rays.
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