Kenneth Wade Hill (born December 14, 1965) is a former
Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...
pitcher
In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throws ("pitches") the baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of retiring a batter, who attempts to either make contact with the pitched ball or draw ...
. During a 14-year career, he pitched for seven teams between 1988 and 2001. As a member of the Montreal Expos in 1994, he appeared in the
All-Star Game
An all-star game is an exhibition game that purports to showcase the best players (the "stars") of a sports league. The exhibition is between two teams organized solely for the event, usually representing the league's teams based on region or div ...
and finished the season tied for the
National League
The National League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the National League (NL), is the older of two leagues constituting Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada, and the world's oldest extant professional team s ...
lead in
wins. He pitched in the
1995 World Series as a member of the
Cleveland Indians
The Cleveland Guardians are an American professional baseball team based in Cleveland. The Guardians compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. Since , they have played at Progressive F ...
.
Early life
Hill graduated from
Lynn Classical High School
Lynn Classical High School is a high school in the city of Lynn, Massachusetts, United States. It is a part of Lynn Public Schools.
The school was once located off of the Lynn Commons, in a building which is now the Fecteau-Leary school. The hig ...
in 1983 and later attended
North Adams State College
The Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts (MCLA) formerly known as North Adams State College (NASC) is a public liberal arts college in North Adams, Massachusetts. It is part of the state university system of Massachusetts. It is a member of th ...
.
Career
Hill signed a contract with the
Detroit Tigers
The Detroit Tigers are an American professional baseball team based in Detroit. The Tigers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the American League (AL) Central division. One of the AL's eight charter franchises, the club was f ...
on February 14, 1985.
He made his professional debut that year for the
Gastonia Jets Gastonia may refer to:
* ''Gastonia'' (plant), a genus in the ivy or ginseng family
* ''Gastonia'' (dinosaur), a genus of ankylosaur
*Gastonia, North Carolina
Gastonia is the largest city in and county seat of Gaston County, North Carolina, Un ...
of the
Class A South Atlantic League
The South Atlantic League, often informally called the Sally League, is a Minor League Baseball league with teams predominantly in states along the Atlantic coast of the United States from New York to Georgia. A Class A league for most of its ...
. Hill posted a 3–6 record in 15 appearances (12 starts), with an earned run average of 4.96 in 69 innings.
Hill made 22 appearances (16 starts) for Gastonia in 1986. He posted a 9–5 record and a 2.79 ERA in 122.2 innings.
He also made a single start for the
Glens Falls Tigers The Glens Falls Tigers (formerly the Glens Falls White Sox) were an American minor league baseball team from Glens Falls, New York that played in the Eastern League from 1980 until 1988, the team's ballpark was East Field Stadium. The team was fo ...
, Detroit's
Class AA
Double-A (officially Class AA) is the second-highest level of play in Minor League Baseball in the United States since 1946, below only Triple-A. There are currently 30 teams classified at the Double-A level, one for each team in Major League ...
affiliate,
before he and a player to be named later,
Mike Laga
Michael Russell Laga (born June 14, 1960) is a former professional baseball player for the Detroit Tigers, St. Louis Cardinals and San Francisco Giants in the 1980s and 1990s. He is best known for once hitting a foul ball out of the second Busc ...
, were traded to the
St. Louis Cardinals
The St. Louis Cardinals are an American professional baseball team based in St. Louis. The Cardinals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) Central division. Since the 2006 season, the Cardinals ha ...
organization for
Mike Heath
Michael Thomas Heath (born February 5, 1955) is an American former professional baseball catcher. He played 14 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) with the New York Yankees (1978), Oakland Athletics (1979–1985), St. Louis Cardinals (1986 ...
on August 10.
Before the season ended, Hill posted a 1–2 record in three starts with the
Arkansas Travelers
The Arkansas Travelers, also known informally as The Travs, are a Minor League Baseball team based in North Little Rock, Arkansas. The Travelers are affiliated with the Seattle Mariners as members of the Texas League.
History
The team succeeded ...
, St. Louis's Class AA affiliate.
He split the 1987 season between Arkansas and the
Class A St. Petersburg Cardinals. Hill made 18 appearances for each team and 12 starts combined. With Arkansas, he posted a 3–5 record and a 5.20 ERA over 53.2 innings. With St. Petersburg, he recorded a 1–3 mark and a 4.17 ERA over 41 innings.
In 1988, Hill made 22 starts for Arkansas. He posted a 9–9 record and a 4.92 ERA.
He also saw limited action with the Cardinals, making his MLB debut on September 3.
In that game, Hill faced the
Houston Astros
The Houston Astros are an American professional baseball team based in Houston, Texas. The Astros compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division, having moved to the division in 2013 after ...
and surrendered a pair of earned runs in three innings. In 4 games (1 start) with the Cardinals, Hill tallied an 0–1 record and a 5.14 ERA in 14 innings.
Hill was called up by the injury-plagued
St. Louis Cardinals
The St. Louis Cardinals are an American professional baseball team based in St. Louis. The Cardinals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) Central division. Since the 2006 season, the Cardinals ha ...
in 1989. He started well, but soon went downhill. He finished that season 7–15, but with a decent 3.80 ERA. After an ineffective 1990, Hill went 11–10 with a 3.57 ERA in 1991. In November 1991, he was traded to the
Montreal Expos
The Montreal Expos (french: link=no, Les Expos de Montréal) were a Canadian professional baseball team based in Montreal, Quebec. The Expos were the first Major League Baseball (MLB) franchise located outside the United States. They played in t ...
for first baseman
Andrés Galarraga
Andrés José Padovani Galarraga (; born June 18, 1961) is a Venezuelan former professional baseball first baseman, who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Montreal Expos (– and ), St. Louis Cardinals (), Colorado Rockies (–), At ...
. It was as a member of these Expos that Hill found his groove.
![Ken Hill uniform](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/88/Ken_Hill_uniform.jpg)
In both 1992 and 1994, Hill won 16 games, going 16-9 with a 2.68 ERA in 1991 and 16-5 with a 3.32 ERA in 1994. Notably, the 1994 season was curtailed on August 12 due to the
Major League Baseball strike, stranding him on pace for a 23-7 season. He was also an
All-Star in 1994, pitching 2 innings in relief and walking one, and finished second in
Cy Young
Denton True "Cy" Young (March 29, 1867 – November 4, 1955) was an American Major League Baseball (MLB) pitcher. Born in Gilmore, Ohio, he worked on his family's farm as a youth before starting his professional baseball career. Young entered th ...
voting to
Greg Maddux. He then returned to the Cardinals, where he suffered the same fate he endured in his first stint in St. Louis, winning only 6 games, losing 7, and posting a 5.06 ERA. He was then was traded to the
Cleveland Indians
The Cleveland Guardians are an American professional baseball team based in Cleveland. The Guardians compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. Since , they have played at Progressive F ...
for
minor league prospects
David Bell,
Rick Heiserman
Richard Michael Heiserman (born February 22, 1973) is an American former Major League Baseball pitcher. Heiserman played for the St. Louis Cardinals in . Heiserman came to the Cardinals after he was traded by the Cleveland Indians
The Clevelan ...
, and Pepe McNeal. He did well for the Indians, going 4-1 in the remainder of the regular season and 2-1 in the postseason.
He filed for
free agency
In professional sports, a free agent is a player who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under contract at present but who is ...
in the 1995 postseason and was signed by the
Texas Rangers. In 1996, he tied for the team lead (along with
Bobby Witt
Robert Andrew Witt Sr. (born May 11, 1964) is a former professional baseball pitcher, who played all or parts of 16 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Texas Rangers, Oakland Athletics, Florida Marlins, St. Louis Cardinals, Tampa Bay ...
) with 16 wins and led the Rangers to the postseason for the first time. In 1997, however, an injury sent him to the
disabled list and greatly affected the rest of his playing career. He also played for the
Anaheim Angels
The Los Angeles Angels are an American professional baseball team based in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. The Angels compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division. Since 1966, the team h ...
after being traded there later in 1997 for
Jim Leyritz
James Joseph Leyritz (born December 27, 1963) is an American former professional baseball catcher and infielder. In his 11-year Major League Baseball (MLB) career, Leyritz played for the New York Yankees, Anaheim Angels, Texas Rangers, Boston ...
. He performed poorly over the next two years, going 13-17 and finally being relegated to the bullpen in 1999. He was released in August 2000 but signed by the
Chicago White Sox
The Chicago White Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The White Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. The team is owned by Jerry Reinsdorf, and p ...
, for whom he promptly gave up eight runs in three innings and was released two weeks later.
He accepted a non-roster invitation from the
Tampa Bay Devil Rays
The Tampa Bay Rays are an American professional baseball team based in St. Petersburg, Florida. The Rays compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Since its inception, the team's home ve ...
in 2001, and appeared in five games for them before being released on April 19.
Hill subsequently signed a contract with the
Cincinnati Reds
The Cincinnati Reds are an American professional baseball team based in Cincinnati. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) National League Central, Central division and were a charter member of ...
on May 18, but he was released exactly a month later, on June 18.
The next day, Hill was signed by the
Boston Red Sox
The Boston Red Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Boston. The Red Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Founded in as one of the American League's eight ...
, but he did not remain with their organization following the season.
Personal life
Hill currently resides in
Keller, Texas
Keller is a city in Tarrant County, Texas, in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. According to the 2020 census, the city's population is 45,776, making Keller the 71st most populated city in Texas. The most recent population estimate, as of Ju ...
. His son,
Kenny Hill, was a
quarterback
The quarterback (commonly abbreviated "QB"), colloquially known as the "signal caller", is a position in gridiron football. Quarterbacks are members of the offensive platoon and mostly line up directly behind the offensive line. In modern Ame ...
at
Texas Christian University
Texas Christian University (TCU) is a private research university in Fort Worth, Texas. It was established in 1873 by brothers Addison and Randolph Clark as the Add-Ran Male & Female College. It is affiliated with the Christian Church (Disciples ...
. His youngest son, Marcus, played baseball for the Southlake Carroll Dragons and plays for the
Eastern Kentucky University
Eastern Kentucky University (Eastern or EKU) is a public university in Richmond, Kentucky. As a regional comprehensive institution, EKU also maintains branch campuses in Corbin, Hazard, Lancaster, and Manchester and offers over 40 online u ...
.
See also
*
List of Major League Baseball annual wins leaders
*
List of Texas Rangers Opening Day starting pitchers
The Texas Rangers are a Major League Baseball (MLB) team based in Arlington, Texas. They play in the American League West division. From 1961 to 1971, the team played in Washington, D.C., as the Washington Senators, one of three different major ...
References
External links
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hill, Ken
1965 births
African-American baseball players
Arkansas Travelers players
American expatriate baseball players in Canada
Anaheim Angels players
Baseball players from Massachusetts
Cedar Rapids Kernels players
Charlotte Knights players
Chicago White Sox players
Cleveland Indians players
Edmonton Trappers players
Glens Falls Tigers players
Lake Elsinore Storm players
Living people
Louisville Redbirds players
Louisville RiverBats players
Major League Baseball pitchers
Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts alumni
Montreal Expos players
National League All-Stars
National League wins champions
Ottawa Lynx players
St. Petersburg Cardinals players
Pawtucket Red Sox players
Texas Rangers players
Tampa Bay Devil Rays players
Tulsa Drillers players
21st-century African-American people
20th-century African-American sportspeople
Gastonia Jets players