Rich Hill 捲土重來 - 美國職棒

http://espn.go.com/blog/boston/red-sox/post/_/id/46948/

From Long Island Duck to reborn starter, Rich Hill baffles Rays

Gordon Edes, ESPN Staff Writer


麻州出生的 Rich Hill, 六年沒在大聯盟先發, 昨天難能可貴得到先發,

丟了 7 IP, 10 K 的好投. 事實上這中間幾年, Rich Hill 是相當的掙扎.


Hill 上次先發是 2009, 當時是效力於 O's. 但是其實那個時候的他,

肩膀已經疼痛受傷, 也告知年底需要動手術. 不僅如此, 2011 他還動了 Tommy John.


手術復原後, 他轉去當後援. 這幾年他被四隊簽去, 簽了 9 張小聯盟合約

(BoSox 和他簽了六次), 三次被釋出. 直到今年跑去獨立聯盟 Long Island Ducks 丟球


Hill 很感謝 Ducks 給他機會...當先發投手. Hill 在 Ducks 期間先發了五次,

成績 3-2, 2.79.


此時 BoSox 為了讓 E-Rod, Owens 慢慢減少投球 (局數限制), Wright 還在養傷,

Barnes 適合當後援情況下, Sox 又和 Hill 打了電話.


昨天的好投, Lovullo 表示會讓 Hill 丟到年底, 大概就是至少還有兩次先發的機會.

"多感人的故事啊", Lovullo 說著.



ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. -- Any discussion of the encore, or how many encores
there may be, can wait. You make an improbable journey like the one that
35-year-old left-hander Rich Hill took to be on the mound at Tropicana Field
Sunday afternoon -- the road to the majors doesn’t often lead through
Central Islip, New York -- you stop to admire the view.

“A lot of stuff now,’’ Hill said after holding Tampa Bay to one hit in
seven scoreless innings while striking out 10 in Boston’s 2-0, 13-inning win
over the Rays, “is about staying in the moment, trying not to get too
forward, or think about anything that happened in the past.’’

Hill hadn’t started a big-league game in six years. He was with Baltimore
then, in 2009, his shoulder already was hurting and would require surgery at
the end of the season, and two years later he would undergo Tommy John elbow
surgery.

When he came back, it was as a reliever. Hill pitched for four big-league
teams, signed nine times as a minor-league free agent (six times by the Sox),
was released three times, sold once and reinvented himself this summer as a
starter for the Long Island Ducks of the independent Atlantic League.

“I owe a lot to the Ducks for giving me an opportunity to start,’’ said
Hill, whose manager there was Kevin Baez, the Brooklyn-born shortstop who
spent parts of three seasons with the Mets in the early '90s. “A lot of good
people there.’’

Hill pitched five hitless innings in his Ducks debut, then tied a franchise
record on Aug. 9 with 14 strikeouts in six innings in his next start. For a
few thousand dollars, the Sox purchased Hill and assigned him to Pawtucket,
where he made five starts, posting a 3-2 record with a 2.79 ERA.

When the Sox were looking for another pitcher to stretch out the big-league
rotation to six starters because they wanted to keep down the innings for
rookies Eduardo Rodriguez and Henry Owens, they found themselves scrambling.
Knuckleballer Steven Wright needed more time to recover from a concussion,
and Matt Barnes, another candidate, was better served to stay a reliever, the
Sox decided. The call went out to Hill.

And he responded Sunday with a performance against the Rays that has only one
precedent in Sox history. Only Pedro Martinez, whose no-hit bid was broken up
by John Flaherty leading off the ninth inning on Aug. 29, 2000, had shut out
the Rays on one or fewer hits while striking out 10 or more.

J.P. Arencibia’s infield hit into the shortstop hole with two out in the
third was the only hit allowed by Hill, and it could have gone into the books
as an error by shortstop Xander Bogaerts. Against Hill, no Rays player
advanced as far as second base. Only three Rays hit a ball to the outfield,
and the only other baserunners either reached via walk (one) or hit by pitch
(two).

“Sandy (Leon) did a great job behind the plate,’’ said Hill, citing the
third-string catcher who also had caught Hill in Pawtucket. “I followed his
lead. The command was there with my fastball. I was able to keep the ball
down, and the command of my breaking ball was the way I wanted it to be,
which enhanced my fastball. I got a lot more swings and misses on my fastball
from the good command of the curveball.’’

Hill got 17 swings and misses in all, 11 on his fastball. He threw 57
fastballs, 52 breaking balls, and mixed them beautifully.

“His curveball wasn’t sharp,’’ said Rays right fielder Steve Souza, who
struck out twice against Hill, “but it was just slow enough to throw off
your timing. You’ve got to hand it to him. He threw them both for strikes
most of the game, and in any count.’’

Hill was not involved in the decision; rookie Rusney Castillo won it with a
two-run single in the 13th after six Sox relievers held the Rays scoreless on
three hits after Hill departed. But yes, interim manager Torey Lovullo said,
the plan is to give the native of Milton, Massachusetts, the ball at least
twice more. “It’s a great story,’’ he said.

With no need, Hill said, to forecast the ending.

“Next year? I want to find out who I’m starting against next,’’ Hill
said. “And that’s where we’re going to.’’

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