Rich Hill came in as a relief pitcher for the Boston Red Sox on Thursday night, becoming the only active player to appear in a major league game every year for the last 20 seasons.
“There’s a lot of people to thank to get to this point,” said Hill, visibly emotional in the clubhouse after the 2-0 loss to the Blue Jays. “Putting in the work, the effort to get back. … I’ve always loved doing it. I’m fortunate to be able to do it.”
Hill took over from starter Kutter Crawford with two outs in the seventh inning and struck out Toronto center fielder Daulton Varsho with a runner on second base to end the inning. The 44-year-old Hill, now in his fourth stint with the Red Sox, got a warm reception from the crowd and a handshake from manager Alex Cora when he returned to the dugout.
He went back out for the eighth inning, with Boston behind 2-0, and retired all three batters he faced with a strikeout and two groundouts.
Hill is now among the only pitchers, like Tim Wakefield, to play for the Red Sox at age 44 or older. A native of Milton, Massachusetts, who played college baseball at Michigan, Hill has played for 13 different major league teams.
“Gotta love him, man,” said Blue Jays manager John Schneider, who saw Hill play in the Cape Cod League over 20 years ago. “I laughed when he came in. … I give him all the credit in the world for still doing it. He’s like a baseball version of Tom Brady right now in New England.”
