Former Dodger Signs Minor League Contract With American League Contender

Hill, 45, pitched for the Dodgers from 2016-19, and had been out of baseball since he was released by the Boston Red Sox last September.

Not since 2005 has an MLB season passed without Hill throwing a pitch. The Royals would be the 14th team to employ him at the major league level if he is promoted this season.

"I'd love to play another year and have an opportunity to get into the postseason and win a World Series," Hill told Bob Nightengale's USA Today last November. "That's everybody's dream. I've been close a couple of times, but it's not like anything I've experienced in the game.

"Playing in the postseason, there's nothing like it. Nothing at all like it."

The Royals are an excellent launching pad for a possible postseason berth. They are currently 25-18, more wins than all but one American League team, after clinching a Wild Card berth and advancing to the AL Division Series last October.

Hill will pick up where he left off last fall, when he signed a minor league deal with his hometown Red Sox, but was released by Boston in Sept. 2024. The left-hander saw action in four major league games, all out of the bullpen, going 0-1 with a 4.91 ERA before being designated for assignment.

In 386 career games, Hill is 90-74 with a 4.01 ERA. He sat out the beginning of the 2024 season to coach his son's Little League team, but showed he can still retire major league hitters in an era when teams are trending toward younger pitchers with faster fastballs.

Last winter, Hill participated with — and against — players half his age in the Premier12 tournament in Japan.

Hill debuted with the Chicago Cubs in 2004. Besides the Cubs and Dodgers, he has also pitched for the Baltimore Orioles, Chicago White Sox, Oakland Athletics, Boston Red Sox, Minnesota Twins, Tampa Bay Rays, New York Mets, Pittsburgh Pirates, Cleveland Guardians, Los Angeles Angels, San Diego Padres, and New York Yankees.

Hill told Nightengale he was texting former teammates throughout the Dodgers' World Series run in October.

"It's really cool to see just the joy on their faces," he said. "Seeing other players experience that, you're just genuinely excited for them. And you want that. One more time. So hopefully, that will come around. I still feel that I have a lot to offer. I think baseball is at a crossroads where were need to start developing starting pitching again, and not just relievers who are chasing velocity at a young age. I know I can still provide innings."