Former Red Sox Pitcher Angling for Reunion After Lucas Giolito Injury

Former Massachusetts native Rich Hill has played 19 MLB seasons for 13 different teams. Does he have one more season in him?

Already present at the Boston Red Sox spring training complex in Fort Myers, Fla. Hill appeared on the radio broadcast during Boston's Grapefruit League matchup on Wednesday and certainly sounded open to running it back for perhaps one last time, as the Red Sox find themselves attempting to reorganize their pitching staff in the wake of Tuesday's news that offseason signing Lucas Giolito could be lost for the season.

"I mean, yeah, definitely interested… especially from the player’s standpoint."

- Rich Hill on Wednesday

Hill, the oldest active player in the league, will turn 44 on March 11 and remains a free agent. The southpaw's 2023 season, in which he appeared in 22 games for the Pittsburgh Pirates and 10 for the San Diego Padres, probably helps explains why the veteran is still on the market (obviously in addition to his age). His cumulative record across both stops last year was 8-14 and he posted a ballooning 5.41 ERA.

Hailing from Milton, Mass., this would be Hill's third stint with his hometown club. He first suited up for the Red Sox from 2010-12, appeared in four games for Boston in 2015, and most recently made 26 starts for the club in 2022. Hill and current Red Sox chief baseball officer Craig Breslow were both members of the 2012 team. He would command a relatively inconsequential contract amount, which will be music to John Henry's cheap ears.

Hill has a whopping 382 career regular season games on the mound and 1,405.1 innings pitched under his belt. Brayan Bello, Nick Pivetta, Kutter Crawford, and Garrett Whitlock, widely considered to be the locks for Boston's rotation at the moment, tally 389 games and 1530 innings pitched combined. Tanner Houck and Josh Winckowski will also battle it out for a rotation spot.

In his lengthy career, Hill has compiled a 90-73 record with a respectable 4.01 ERA. He previously appeared for the Chicago Cubs, Baltimore Orioles, Cleveland Indians/Guardians, Los Angeles Angels, New York Yankees, Oakland Athletics, Los Angeles Dodgers, Minnesota Twins, Tampa Bay Rays, New York Mets, Pittsburgh Pirates, and San DIego Padres. His 13 different clubs are the second-highest total by a player in MLB history.

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