Inductees

The story goes that he was discovered in the deep woods of Louisiana by former Negro Leagues manager-turned-scout Buck O’Neil and yet walked away from the game while in the minor leagues, unconvinced of the future for relief pitchers.

Imagine that. Baseball was that close to never hearing of Lee Smith. Yes, that Lee Smith, the intimidating, 6-foot-6 right-hander who, it seemed, would leave the bullpen on Tuesday and might arrive to the mound by Saturday but threw that wipeout slider – the pitch that powered his way atop Major League Baseball’s all-times saves list.

“It was a slap in the face to be in the bullpen,” Smith said. “Back then, you only pitched when the starting pitcher got his butt kicked.”

Smith’s change of heart led to an 18-year career in the big leagues, including four seasons with the St. Louis Cardinals in the early 1990s as he set the franchise record for career saves. That’s why the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame proudly inducted Smith with the Class of 2018.

Overall, Smith ranks third, fourth and second, respectively, on the all-time saves lists for Major League Baseball (478), the National League (347) and the Cardinals (160). In fact, he held the big-league record for a whopping 14 seasons until being passed in 2006 by the Padres’ Trevor Hoffman, who was later overtaken by the Yankees’ Mariano Rivera.

Smith pitched for St. Louis from mid-1990 to 1993, leading the NL in saves in his second and third seasons with 47 and 43, and finished second in 1991 Cy Young Award voting. Overall, his 160 career saves stood as the franchise record until being eclipsed in 2006 by Jason Isringhausen (MSHOF 2016).

“This sounds like I’m just being nice, but it’s true. St. Louis was my favorite place to play,” Smith said. “The city was so much like my personality, laid back. And the front office, the coaching staff, the guys, they all meant so much to me.”

With Smith as closer, the Cardinals rallied from a 92-loss season in 1990 and won 84, 83 and 87 games in his final three seasons under manager Joe Torre.

“That was the first time I went to a place that had Hall of Fame-type players and coaches,” Smith said. “Red Schoendienst, he’d talk and be holding court. And you had (coach) Ted Savage and Stan Musial. I think I learned more about baseball by sitting and listening to them.”

Smith also pitched for the Cubs (1980-1987), Red Sox (1988-1990), Yankees (1993), Orioles (1994), Angels (1996), Reds (1996) and Expos (1997). Smith had 169 saves of more than an inning and 94 saves of two or more innings. He set the MLB record for games finished (802) and his 1,022 career games pitched were the third-most in history when he retired.

These days, Smith – who is dad to Nikita, Lee Jr., Dimitri, Nicholas and Alanna – is a roving pitching coach for the San Francisco Giants.

But to think that his career almost never happened.

Smith, a basketball standout at Cantor High School in Louisiana who signed a scholarship at Northwestern State, had little interest in baseball.

However, O’Neil – who had found the great Lou Brock – discovered Smith on a scouting trip intended to evaluate Cliff Blue, nephew of big-leaguer Vida Blue. Smith pitched 11 innings that day, leading O’Neil to recommend Smith as the Chicago Cubs’ second-round draft pick in 1975.

“A Dodgers scout there had asked, ‘Who’s this other guy?’ That’s how I got the nickname, ‘The Other Guy,’” Smith said with a laugh. “I still have the newspaper clipping: ‘The Other Guy drafted by the Cubs.’”

However, in 1979, Smith was frustrated.

“Back then, if you didn’t make it to the big leagues by your third or fourth year, you were done,” Smith said.

Adding to aggravation was the fact friends back home in Louisiana questioned the legitimacy of Smith’s career, telling him that he wasn’t really in the pros if he wasn’t in the big leagues. That lighted a fire for awhile. But, by August 1979, he was done.

However, O’Neil and Cubs legend Billy Williams paid him a visit.

“They came to my house and sat me down. They said teams were going to start building teams from the bullpen,” Smith said. “But I just didn’t want to play anymore, and the Cubs sent a contract anyway. I was hoping they wouldn’t because I didn’t want to do it. Six months later, I was in the big leagues and never looked back.”