Is Burch Smith this year’s Jacob Webb? The 34-year-old reliever has catapulted up the bullpen hierarchy over the last month.
The Orioles signed infielder Jean Segura to a minor league deal earlier this week. Segura will likely never play for the big-league club, but the front office routinely looks to improve depth in the system. The Birds inked J.D. Davis to a minor-league deal last week, and they acquired Livian Soto at the deadline for the same reason.
Baltimore has suffered its fair share of infield injuries with both Jordan Westburg and Jorge Mateo currently sidelined, but nothing compares to the woes on the mound. There’s a legitimate argument that the Orioles have more pitching talent on the injured list than the active roster.
The O’s landed a pair of starting pitchers at the trade deadline, but they’ve done their best to add bullpen depth throughout the year. Unlike utility infielders, outcast relievers arrive with a certain level of upside. They often possess at least one above-average trait that could potentially be molded into something useful.
The front office has taken plenty of swings this year. Vinny Nittoli got a look, and the O’s claimed Levi Stoudt from the Mariners. The Orioles signed Julio Teheran to a pair of minor-league contracts, and Matt Krook earned some burn on the MLB roster.
The Orioles added a pair of relievers from the Phillies at the deadline. Seranthony Dominguez looks like a legitimate contributor, while the Gregory Soto experiment has yet to yield positive results. Dominguez will likely see the most high-leverage situations of any mid-season addition, but another reliever has the opportunity to prove his worth.
The Orioles signed Burch Smith to a minor-league deal on June 27. Baltimore selected his contract on July 11, and he made his first appearance for the club a day later.
Smith spent 2022 in Japan and last year in Korea before making 25 appearances for the Marlins earlier this season. He flashed an impressive groundball rate with Miami, but the Marlins deemed him expendable with a 4.25 ERA.
Smith and Nittoli coexisted in the bullpen for a brief stretch, but Hyde provided Smith more opportunities. The San Antonio native turned some heads with a four-seamer that touched the upper 90s, and Smith did not allow a run in his first four appearances with the Orioles.
One month in, Smith has catapulted up the bullpen hierarchy. Yennier Cano and Dominguez occupy the top spots, but Cionel Pérez has struggled in the second half. Craig Kimbrel and Soto appear allergic to high-leverage appearances, and it’s difficult to trust Bryan Baker on any given night. Keegan Akin recently returned after a stint at Norfolk, and Albert Suárez is back in the rotation.
The current situation says more about Baltimore’s bullpen than it does about Smith, but the Orioles can’t do much about that right now. Injuries and regressions have forced Smith into a role that another reliever filled all too well last season.
Baltimore claimed Jacob Webb on August 7, 2023. Webb quickly earned the trust of Brandon Hyde before making the ALDS roster. Webb stuck around over the offseason and appeared to take the ball almost everyday before going down with a sore elbow last week.
The Orioles expect Webb back in another week or two, but his absence created a void for Smith to fill. Smith, to his credit, has resembled more than just a warm body with an arm and a glove.
The 34-year-old has yet to allow more than one run in an outing and has only relinquished one homer in a Baltimore uniform. His 2.85 FIP sits almost a full run below his 3.83 ERA, and he’s 4-0 on the season.
Baltimore will attempt to get Kimbrel and Soto right, but the bullpen routinely has three or four innings to cover. Danny Coulombe will slide right into a high-leverage spot if he returns this season, but there will be plenty of mid-to-late work still available for Smith and Webb.
The Orioles need relievers that can get outs. With Suárez in the rotation, and Webb currently sidelined, Baltimore needs Smith to be one of those pitchers right now.