Whenever there has been an opening in the Boston Red Sox rotation in nearly the last two decades, Rich Hill has been inevitable.
Hill, who turned 45 weeks before Opening Day, has appeared in parts of six seasons with the Red Sox. He’s pitched for 13 MLB teams in his 20-year-long MLB tenure, and soon enough, he could check another off his ever-growing list.
Hill on May 13 signed a minor league deal with the Kansas City Royals, according to a post from the team. He’ll report to the team’s spring training facility in Surprise, Florida, before he’s sent to Triple-A Omaha.
If Hill appears for the Royals this year, he’ll tie Edwin Jackson for the record of most MLB teams played for with a staggering 14 clubs on his stat sheet. He’ll also be the oldest big leaguer to take the field since Ichiro Suzuki in 2019 and the oldest pitcher since Bartolo Colón in 2018. The oldest currently active player in MLB, Justin Verlander, is 42.
Multiple-time Red Sox Rich Hill signs minor league deal with the Royals at 45 years old
We have signed LHP Rich Hill to a minor league contract. He will report to Surprise and is expected to join Omaha (AAA) soon.
— Kansas City Royals (@Royals) May 13, 2025
Hill has become something of a folk hero among Red Sox fans. The Milton, Massachusetts native has signed with the Sox eight times in his career and is seemingly always available when they need a lift, mostly in an innings-eating capacity.
Hill is a career 4.01 ERA pitcher with 1,428 strikeouts over 1,409 innings. He’s spent most of his career with the Red Sox, but has also appeared for the Dodgers, Cubs, Guardians, Rays, Pirates, Orioles, Yankees, A’s, Mets, Padres, Twins and Angels. The Dodgers and Cubs are his second-longest tenured clubs and he spent parts of four seasons with each.
The lefty most recently appeared in the big leagues with Boston in a relief role. He posted a 4.91 ERA with five strikeouts and three walks over 3.2 innings before he was designated for assignment in September.
Hopefully, Hill sees his day in the big leagues for the Royals and continues to break records as his career goes on. He’s far from the best pitcher to don a Red Sox uniform, but plenty of Sox fans continue to root for the legend at each of his new destinations.
