in exchange for reliever Chuck McElroy on May 27, 1996. Smith assumed setup duty for the Reds as closer Jeff Brantley was en route to a career-high 44 saves. In his return to the National League, Smith appeared in 43 games and registered two saves; his ERA with the Reds (4.06) was nearly as high as the league average (4.21), while for the full season he logged 6.7 strikeouts per nine innings pitched, the lowest to that point in his career. The Reds granted him free agency after the season. Montreal Expos Smith was picked up by the Montreal Expos for 1997 on a $400,000 contract. This was Smith's final season of his career. His last game of the season, and his career, was two innings of extra-innings relief during an interleague rivalry game won by Toronto on July 2. After posting career-worsts in ERA (5.82), hits per nine innings (11.63) and several other statistics, Smith announced his retirement on July 15. Smith was formally released by the Expos on September 25, 1997. Post-Major League career Despite his retirement announcement, the Kansas City Royals signed Smith as a free agent and invited him to spring training for 1998. In late March, he refused a minor-league assignment and left training camp. In early June, he signed a minor-league deal with the Houston Astros, appearing in two Double-A games with the Jackson Generals and 10 Triple-A games with the New Orleans Zephyrs. After posting an ERA near 7.00 in Triple-A, he was released at the end of June, and retired again. Over the course of his career in the major leagues, Smith appeared in 1,022 games, accruing a 7192 win–loss record to go along with his 478 saves. His career ERA was 3.03, and he struck out 1,251 batters. Post-retirement Two years after his retirement in 1998, Smith went to work as a roving minor league pitching instructor for the San Francisco Giants. Giants director of player personnel, former teammate Dick Tidrow, along with the manager of the Double-A Shreveport Captains, Jack Hiatt, offered the job to Smith, who gladly agreed, since it was in his hometown. Smith still held this job with the Giants as of 2009. In the 2006 World Baseball Classic, Smith served as the pitching coach of the South Africa national baseball team, which was eliminated in pool play, finishing with an 0–3 record. In 2007, Smith was