Former Dodger Rich Hill is a fighter. He was drafted twice, in 1999 and 2001, and turned down both opportunities to pitch at the University of Michigan. After his junior year, he went into the draft again in 2002 and ended up signing with the Cubs as a fourth-round pick. Since then, he's pitched for almost half the league, including three years and some change with the Dodgers from 2016 to 2019.
Hill is 43, but he's not done yet. He's expressed interest in joining a team halfway through the 2024 season, giving himself more time to prepare for major league innings.
Hill's commitment to adding a 20th MLB season to his resumé is admirable, and it serves as direct inverse to comments made a few weeks ago by Angels third baseman Anthony Rendon, who complained about the length of the season and the amount of games he's expected to play in. On an appearance on B/R Walk-Off, Hill addressed Rendon's comments and said that he'd like the baseball season to fill an entire calendar year.
Former Dodgers lefty Rich Hill had a direct rebuff to Anthony Rendon's comments about the baseball season
Hill, who will be the oldest player in MLB if he plays again in 2024, directly rebuffing Rendon makes the latter's comments even sadder than they already were. Hill doesn't have a contract and might not be offered one when he's ready to come back, while Rendon is sitting pretty on a seven-year, $245 million contract with the Angels and has only appeared in 200 games for them over four seasons. It's widely known as one of the biggest contract busts in recent memory, and Rendon's apparent disdain for baseball is an insult to Angels fans but also the game as a whole.
It seems that Rendon has entirely taken for granted that he's become a multimillionaire by playing a game for a living. The Angels want him to come back and play third base from them everyday, but he doesn't seem willing to do so. It's a take-the-money-and-run scenario that has made him one of the most disliked figures in baseball. Hill, meanwhile, seems to appreciate the value of the sport so much that he'll keep playing until he physically can't anymore. This particular dunk on Rendon, though it's just one in a sea of dunks, is all the more satisfying coming from a player with so much experience and drive.