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Kansas City Royals shouldn’t keep Burch Smith around in 2019

By Leigh Oleszczak

KANSAS CITY, MO - AUGUST 26: Burch Smith #64 relief pitcher of the Kansas City Royals throws in the fifth inning against the Cleveland Indians at Kauffman Stadium on August 26, 2018 in Kansas City, Missouri. All players across MLB will wear nicknames on their backs as well as colorful, non traditional uniforms featuring alternate designs inspired by youth-league uniforms during Players Weekend. (Photo by Ed Zurga/Getty Images)
KANSAS CITY, MO - AUGUST 26: Burch Smith #64 relief pitcher of the Kansas City Royals throws in the fifth inning against the Cleveland Indians at Kauffman Stadium on August 26, 2018 in Kansas City, Missouri. All players across MLB will wear nicknames on their backs as well as colorful, non traditional uniforms featuring alternate designs inspired by youth-league uniforms during Players Weekend. (Photo by Ed Zurga/Getty Images) /
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The Kansas City Royals had two Rule-5 Draft players on their team last year and one of them was pitcher Burch Smith. Smith was disappointing in 2018, but will he get another chance in 2019 to prove his worth?

No one expected the Kansas City Royals to do much in 2018. That’s why when a guy named Burch Smith was pitching in games, no one really batted an eye. It was a rebuilding year after all, and Smith was a Rule-5 Draft guy.

Smith had not pitched in the majors since 2013 and the rust certainly showed in his inaugural season as a Royal. He appeared in 38 games, starting six of them, and threw in 78 innings to the tune of a 6.92 ERA, 1.667 WHIP, and recorded just one win to six losses. Not exactly mind blowing numbers.

With the Royals now shifting their attention to the 2019 season, will Burch Smith be a part of those plans? Honestly, I don’t see how keeping him around makes much sense.

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The Royals are rebuilding, meaning they’re wanting young guys to get opportunities to prove themselves. Smith will turn 29 in April, which doesn’t exactly bode well for him being a part of this rebuild. It’d be one thing if Smith had actually put up good numbers last season, but that was not the case.

The Royals have plenty of rotation options for 2019 and beyond. The bullpen, on the other hand, might need some veteran arms in there. That could be a role for Smith, at least to start the year. The bullpen was the weakest area for the Royals in 2018 and Dayton Moore might want to consider adding a free agent or two to throw out of the pen for next season.

There are arguments for keeping Smith around, of course. As mentioned above, he’s a veteran with both bullpen experience and starting experience, which could come in handy when it comes to mentoring a young team.

Smith mainly stepped into the rotation due to injury, which is another reason why keeping him on the 40-man roster could make sense. The Royals were banged up a lot last year and their starting rotation was almost completely wiped out. Smith would at least provide a veteran presence.

At the end of the day though, Burch Smith isn’t going to be with this team when they’re contending for the playoffs, so what’s the point of keeping him around in 2019 and beyond? He might be an easy candidate to designate for assignment this winter.

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