Rich Hill Bio
Richard Joseph Hill, born on March 11, 1980, in Milton, Massachusetts, is an American professional baseball pitcher widely known for his distinctive curveball and journeyman career. Nicknamed “Dick Mountain” by former Boston Red Sox teammate Brock Holt, Hill has played in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 2005 through 2025, appearing for a record-tying fourteen different franchises. He was the oldest active player in MLB during both the 2024 and 2025 seasons, a testament to his remarkable durability.
Throughout a career marked by injury comebacks, late-career resurgence, and a memorable stretch with the Los Angeles Dodgers, Hill has earned both American League and National League Pitcher of the Month honors. He currently stands as a free agent after a brief stint with the Kansas City Royals in 2025.
Early Life and Background
Rich Hill was born and raised in Milton, Massachusetts, where he grew up in a family with strong athletic roots. Although naturally right-handed, Hill became a left-handed pitcher thanks to the influence of his older brother, John, a state champion gymnast who performed in the closing ceremonies of the 1992 Summer Olympics. That early mentorship helped shape the arm angle and craft that would later define Hill’s professional career.
He attended Milton High School, where he played varsity baseball as a freshman, becoming one of just four players in school history to do so. Following high school, Hill was drafted by the Cincinnati Reds in the 36th round of the 1999 MLB Draft but opted to play college baseball at the University of Michigan. With the Michigan Wolverines, he developed into a full-time starter by his sophomore year, posting a 3.84 earned run average in 15 games, and he also played collegiate summer baseball for the Chatham A’s of the Cape Cod Baseball League. He was drafted twice more, in 2001 by the Anaheim Angels and in 2002 by the Chicago Cubs, before finally signing with the Cubs.
Path to Baseball
Hill’s path to the major leagues was neither fast nor straightforward. After being drafted three times, he signed with the Chicago Cubs in 2002 and climbed through their minor league system, playing for the Boise Hawks, Lansing Lugnuts, and Daytona Cubs. He was recognized for having one of the best curveballs in the Cubs organization and led the Northwest League in strikeouts in 2003 with 99. By 2005, he had advanced to Triple-A Iowa, where his performance earned him a midseason call-up to the major leagues.
His MLB debut came on June 15, 2005, against the Florida Marlins, when he pitched one inning of relief and recorded his first strikeout against Carlos Delgado. Although his rookie numbers were modest, Hill’s curveball drew praise from teammates and catchers, including Michael Barrett, who called it “electric” and “nearly unhittable.” That signature pitch would carry him through the ups and downs of a long, winding career across many organizations.
Rich Hill Career
Early Career (2005-2009)
Hill spent the first several years of his MLB career with the Chicago Cubs, where he developed into a reliable starter. In 2006, he posted a 6-3 record with a 2.93 ERA after being recalled from Triple-A, threw the only two complete games by a Cubs pitcher that season, and earned his first major league victory against the Arizona Diamondbacks. The following year, he posted an 11-8 record with a 3.92 ERA and 183 strikeouts, and he started Game 3 of the 2007 National League Division Series against the Diamondbacks. However, control issues and injuries, including a torn labrum, limited his time on the mound in 2008 and 2009.
Traded to the Baltimore Orioles in February 2009, Hill made his debut in May and recorded a win with six strikeouts, but a torn labrum in his left shoulder was revealed midseason. He underwent surgery in August and was outrighted off the 40-man roster by October. He signed a minor league deal with the St. Louis Cardinals in January 2010, but struggled in spring training and was beaten out for the rotation by Jaime García, eventually opting out of his contract in June.
Boston Red Sox Breakthrough (2010-2012)
Hill signed a minor league contract with the Boston Red Sox in June 2010 and was called up in September, where he made his Red Sox debut in relief against the Seattle Mariners. After re-signing in December, he transitioned to a sidewinder delivery during spring training in 2011 and pitched well in the minors before being called up in May. His 2011 season was cut short by a torn ulnar collateral ligament, leading to Tommy John surgery in June.
Returning in 2012 after extensive rehabilitation, Hill posted a 1.83 ERA in 25 games for the Red Sox, striking out 21 batters in just over 19 innings. He was non-tendered again after the season, but his time in Boston established him as a crafty left-hander capable of returning from serious injury.
Journeyman Years (2013-2015)
In February 2013, Hill signed with the Cleveland Indians, reuniting with former Red Sox manager Terry Francona. He appeared in a career-high 63 games as a reliever, but posted a 6.28 ERA. A brief 2014 stretch saw him traded to the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim and later signed by the New York Yankees, though he struggled to stay in the majors for long stretches.
Determined to return as a starter, Hill signed with the Long Island Ducks of the Atlantic League in July 2015 and struck out 14 in a single start, tying a franchise record. He later signed minor league deals with the Washington Nationals and a third stint with the Red Sox, where he was promoted in September and went 2-1 with a 1.55 ERA and 36 strikeouts in four starts, including a complete-game two-hitter with 10 strikeouts.
Oakland Athletics Resurgence (2015-2016)
Hill’s late-career breakthrough came in Oakland, where he signed a one-year, $6 million contract in November 2015. He went 9-3 with a 2.25 ERA in 14 starts and was named American League Pitcher of the Month for May 2016 after a 5-1 record, 2.13 ERA, and 37 strikeouts in six starts. On August 1, 2016, he was traded to the Los Angeles Dodgers along with Josh Reddick.
Los Angeles Dodgers Era (2016-2019)
With the Dodgers, Hill debuted on August 24, 2016, pitching six scoreless innings to beat the San Francisco Giants. He was re-signed in December 2016 to a three-year, $48 million contract. In 2017, he was named National League Pitcher of the Month for July and pitched a memorable game against the Pittsburgh Pirates on August 23, carrying a perfect game into the ninth inning before a fielding error and a walk-off home run by Josh Harrison ended his no-hit bid in extra innings, the first such occurrence in MLB history.
Hill also started in the 2018 World Series, pitching six shutout innings in Game 4 before being pulled by manager Dave Roberts. He was awarded the Tony Conigliaro Award in 2018 for his perseverance. In 2019, he finished 4-1 with a 2.45 ERA in 13 starts after recovering from a left forearm strain.
Recent Teams (2020-2025)
Hill signed a one-year deal with the Minnesota Twins in December 2019 and made his debut in July 2020. In February 2021, he signed with the Tampa Bay Rays, where he recorded a career-high 13 strikeouts in a single game and was named American League Pitcher of the Month for May. He was later traded to the New York Mets, then signed a fourth stint with the Boston Red Sox in 2022, posting an 8-7 record with a 4.27 ERA.
After a 2023 split between the Pittsburgh Pirates and San Diego Padres, Hill returned to the Red Sox in 2024, becoming the oldest active player in MLB and the only player to appear in every MLB season from 2005 through 2024. He signed a minor league deal with the Kansas City Royals in May 2025 and was called up in July, tying Edwin Jackson’s record of fourteen teams played for, before being designated for assignment in late July and electing free agency in August.
Notable Events and Milestones
Hill’s most famous moment came on August 23, 2017, against the Pittsburgh Pirates, when a ninth-inning fielding error and a tenth-inning walk-off home run denied him a perfect game and a no-hitter, the only such combined occurrence in MLB history. He also tied the league record by playing for fourteen different franchises and became the 18th pitcher to start a game at age 45 or older when he debuted with the Royals in July 2025.
Rich Hill Career Wins
Rich Hill has accumulated victories across more than a dozen MLB organizations, with his most productive stretches coming in Chicago, Oakland, and Los Angeles. While his career was defined more by longevity, craft, and comebacks than by championship hardware, he earned Pitcher of the Month honors in both the American League and National League, a rare feat for a journeyman left-hander.
MLB Highlights
Hill’s MLB career wins include his first major league victory on August 1, 2006, against the Arizona Diamondbacks, and his most recent with the Kansas City Royals in 2025. He posted double-digit win totals with the Cubs in 2007 and with the Red Sox in 2022, and his late-career resurgence in Oakland and Los Angeles cemented his reputation as a crafty veteran.
Rich Hill Family
Family Background and Racing Lineage
Hill’s older brother, John, was a state champion gymnast who performed in the closing ceremonies of the 1992 Summer Olympics. John’s athletic background and encouragement played a key role in helping Rich transition from being a naturally right-handed thrower to a left-handed pitcher, a transformation that shaped the rest of his career.
Personal Life
Hill married Caitlin McClellan, a nurse, on November 11, 2007. The couple had two sons, Brice and Brooks. Tragically, Brooks died in February 2014 at the age of two months due to lissencephaly and congenital nephrotic syndrome. In honor of his son, Hill donated $575,000 to Massachusetts General Hospital for Children, where Brooks had been treated, as part of a fundraising campaign that has raised nearly $1 million for research into rare genetic diseases. Hill wore the names “Brice” and “D. Mountain” on his jersey during MLB Players Weekend events in 2017 and 2018 to honor his sons.
2025 Season Performance
The 2025 season saw Rich Hill continue his remarkable longevity as one of the oldest players in MLB history. After beginning the year as a free agent, he signed a minor league contract with the Kansas City Royals in May and reported to the team’s facility in Surprise, Arizona, before being assigned to the Triple-A Omaha Storm Chasers. Despite having the option to become a free agent in mid-June, Hill chose to remain with the organization.
On July 22, 2025, Hill was called up by the Royals and made his season debut as the starting pitcher against the Chicago Cubs, tying Edwin Jackson for the MLB record of fourteen teams played for. He became the 18th pitcher in major league history to start a game at age 45 or older, and only the sixth to do so in the 21st century, joining Jamie Moyer, Roger Clemens, Randy Johnson, Tim Wakefield, and Bartolo Colón.
In two starts for Kansas City, Hill posted an 0-2 record with a 5.00 ERA and four strikeouts over nine innings before being designated for assignment on July 29. He elected free agency on August 1 after clearing waivers, leaving the future of one of baseball’s most enduring careers uncertain but firmly cementing his legacy as a record-setting journeyman and the oldest active player in MLB during the 2024 and 2025 seasons.