Last season the Los Angeles Dodgers didn’t trade for any of the elite starting pitchers they were often linked to, but in Rich Hill acquired a starter who was pitching as well as anyone leading up to the non-waiver trade deadline.
Hill was on the disabled list at the time of being dealt by the Oakland Athletics, and his blister was an issue the Dodgers were required to monitor. A resurgent season led to the veteran southpaw re-signing with Los Angeles on a three-year, $48 million contract.
Hill’s bout with blisters were said to be behind him but they resurfaced. More pressing, however, has been inconsistency from the team’s expected No. 2 starter behind Clayton Kershaw.
Thursday’s outing against the Cleveland Indians was yet another saddled by poor command and results. Following the start, Hill didn’t split hairs over his string of trouble, via Bill Plunkett of the Southern California News Group:
“Sucking,” Hill said, his normally affable personality replaced by disgust and disappointment with the latest in a string of starts that have fallen far short of his and the Dodgers’ expectations. “I mean, that’s really it. At the end of the day, that’s what it is.”
“Results obviously need to be better, at the end of the day – striking the curveball better, sequences, getting ahead with the curveball, being able to actually have that work for you would be huge for me. I’m missing a little bit on that right now. Other than that, I don’t think it has anything to do with mechanics. I don’t think it has anything to do with anything physically. I don’t think it’s anything mentally. It’s just about going out there and making better pitches. That’s it.”
Hill needed 40 pitches to get through the first inning and was staring at a 3-0 deficit by the time he could record three outs. The Indians tacked on two more runs in the second inning.
Hill began the fifth at 93 pitches. He failed to retire either of the two batters faced and was replaced by Ross Stripling. The right-handed reliever promptly surrendered a three-run home run, allowing the Indians to pull away after the Dodgers cut their deficit to one run.
The seven runs Hill was charged with were the most since allowing nine runs in 3.1 innings to the Boston Red Sox during the 2009 season. On the year, he’s now 3-3 with a 5.14 ERA and 1.57 WHIP.
Hill hasn’t reached the sixth inning in any of his eight starts this season, and failed to record an out in the fifth inning in four of those outings. While the Dodgers grappled with finding a solution to Hill’s blisters, manager Dave Roberts said a role out of the bullpen was to be considered.
However, it was soon after dismissed as a possibility, and to public knowledge the topic has not been broached a second time. Hill expressed a willingness to pitch as a reliever if it was in the team’s best interest.
