Peter John Smith (born February 27, 1966) is a former

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...

starting pitcher In baseball (hardball or softball), a starting pitcher or starter is the first pitcher in the game for each team. A pitcher is credited with a game started if they throw the first pitch to the opponent's first batter of a game. Starting pit ...

, born in

Abington, Massachusetts Abington is a town in Plymouth County, Massachusetts, United States, southeast of Boston. The population was 17,062 at the 2020 census. History Before the Europeans made their claim to the area, the local Native Americans referred to the area ...

. He was drafted by the

Philadelphia Phillies The Philadelphia Phillies are an American professional baseball team based in Philadelphia. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) National League East, East division. Since 2004, the team's home sta ...

in the first round (21st overall pick) in the

1984 Major League Baseball draft First round selections The following are the first round picks in the 1984 Major League Baseball draft. Other notable players *Jeff Blauser†, 1st round (secondary phase), 4th overall by the Atlanta Braves * Greg Maddux‡, 2nd round, 31st ...

. Smith was signed on June 14, 1984, to play in the Philadelphia Phillies organization. He batted and threw right-handed during his

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding tea ...

career.

Early life

Smith graduated from Burlington High School in 1984 where he pitched two

no-hitters In baseball, a no-hitter is a game in which a team was not able to record a hit. Major League Baseball (MLB) officially defines a no-hitter as a completed game in which a team that batted in at least nine innings recorded no hits. A pitcher wh ...

in his senior year.

Career

The Philadelphia Phillies traded Smith to the

Atlanta Braves The Atlanta Braves are an American professional baseball team based in the Atlanta metropolitan area. The Braves compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) National League East, East division. The Braves ...

, along with

Ozzie Virgil, Jr. Osvaldo José Virgil Jr. (born December 7, 1956) is a former Major League Baseball catcher who played with the Philadelphia Phillies, Atlanta Braves and Toronto Blue Jays from 1980 to 1990. His father, Ozzie Sr., was a Major League third baseman ...

, for

Steve Bedrosian Stephen Wayne Bedrosian (born December 6, 1957) is an American former Major League Baseball player. Nicknamed "Bedrock", he played from 1981 to 1995 with the Atlanta Braves, Philadelphia Phillies, San Francisco Giants, and Minnesota Twins. Bedrosi ...

and

Milt Thompson Milton Orville Thompson (May 4, 1926 – August 6, 1993), ( Lt Cmdr, USNR), better known as Milt Thompson, was an American naval officer, aviator, engineer, and NASA research pilot. He was one of twelve pilots who flew the North American X ...

. Smith made his major league debut on September 8, 1987 with the Atlanta Braves at age 21. In , Smith pitched 3

shutouts In team sports, a shutout ( US) or clean sheet ( UK) is a game in which one team prevents the other from scoring any points. While possible in most major sports, they are highly improbable in some sports, such as basketball. Shutouts are usuall ...

, the season after his rookie year. The Atlanta Braves hoped Smith would develop into an ace pitcher as

John Smoltz John Andrew Smoltz (born May 15, 1967), nicknamed "Smoltzie" and "Marmaduke", is an American former baseball pitcher who played 22 seasons in Major League Baseball from 1988 to 2009, all but the last year with the Atlanta Braves. An eight-time A ...

and

Tom Glavine Thomas Michael Glavine (born March 25, 1966) is an American former professional baseball pitcher who played 22 seasons in Major League Baseball, for the Atlanta Braves (1987–2002, 2008) and New York Mets (2003–2007). With 164 victories durin ...

were developing to be. But in , Smith's

ERA An era is a span of time defined for the purposes of chronology or historiography, as in the regnal eras in the history of a given monarchy, a calendar era used for a given calendar, or the geological eras defined for the history of Earth. Comp ...

was at 4.75 at the end of the season, higher than his ERA in 1988 when it was at 3.69. On a recent radio show, former Brave

Mark Lemke Mark Alan Lemke (born August 13, 1965) is a former Major League Baseball player and current broadcaster. Nicknamed "the Lemmer", he was a popular second baseman for the Atlanta Braves from to . He won the 1995 World Series with the Braves over ...

said he thought Smith's down year could be attributed to injuries the pitcher hid from the team and media. He played the 1987 through seasons with the Atlanta Braves before being traded to the

New York Mets The New York Mets are an American professional baseball team based in the New York City borough of Queens. The Mets compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) East division. They are one of two major league ...

for

Dave Gallagher David Thomas Gallagher (born September 20, 1960) is an American former professional baseball journeyman outfielder, who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for seven teams, during his nine-year big league career (–). Early life Gallagher w ...

. With the New York Mets, Smith only played the season before being granted

free agency In professional sports, a free agent is a player who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under contract at present but who is a ...

on October 25 of that year. On December 1, 1994, Smith was signed as a free agent with the

Cincinnati Reds The Cincinnati Reds are an American professional baseball team based in Cincinnati. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) National League Central, Central division and were a charter member of ...

. He played with the Cincinnati Reds for only half of the season before being released on June 27, signing with the

Florida Marlins The Miami Marlins are an American professional baseball team based in Miami. The Marlins compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) East division. The club's home ballpark is LoanDepot Park. The franc ...

on July 1. After spending the rest of 1995 in the minors, Smith became a free agent again, signing with the

San Diego Padres The San Diego Padres are an American professional baseball team based in San Diego. The Padres compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Founded in 1969, the club has won two NL penna ...

on December 23. Smith played with San Diego's

Class AAA Triple-A (officially Class AAA) has been the highest level of play in Minor League Baseball in the United States since 1946. Currently, two leagues operate at the Triple-A level, the International League (IL) and the Pacific Coast League (PCL ...

farm club, the Las Vegas Stars, but returned to the majors in 1997, playing the next season and a half with the Padres. On May 31, 1997, Smith picked up his one and only MLB save during a Padres 12-5 victory over the Astros. On June 9, 1998, Smith was traded to the

Baltimore Orioles The Baltimore Orioles are an American professional baseball team based in Baltimore. The Orioles compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League East, East division. As one of the American L ...

organization for minor leaguer Eric Estes. He played his final game on September 24, 1998. He earned a career ERA of 4.55,

striking out ''Striking Out'' is an Irish television legal drama series, broadcast on RTÉ, that first aired on 1 January 2017. Produced by Bl!nder F!lms for RTÉ Television, ''Striking Out'' stars Amy Huberman as Dublin-based solicitor Tara Rafferty, who is ...

640 batters. Smith also pitched 4 shutouts throughout his major league career.

References

External links

* , o
Baseball Almanac
o

o
The Ultimate Mets Database
{{DEFAULTSORT:Smith, Pete Major League Baseball pitchers Atlanta Braves players New York Mets players Cincinnati Reds players San Diego Padres players Baltimore Orioles players Baseball players from Massachusetts 1966 births Living people People from Abington, Massachusetts People from Burlington, Massachusetts Florida Complex League Phillies players Clearwater Phillies players Greenville Braves players Macon Braves players Richmond Braves players Charlotte Knights players Las Vegas Stars (baseball) players Memphis Redbirds players Sportspeople from Middlesex County, Massachusetts Sportspeople from Plymouth County, Massachusetts