Rich Hill has faced yet another setback, as the Red Sox have placed the lefty on their 15 day disabled list.
Hill left Wednesday’s game against the White Sox in obvious discomfort, holding his left arm. Peter Abraham said yesterday that the injury was apparently serious, likely requiring season ending surgery.
The 31 year old will seek a second opinion, but it’s looking like he will be out much longer than the required 15 days.
Hill originally entered the majors as a starter for the Chicago Cubs, and quite a good one at that. Over 32 starts in 2007, the lefty went 11-8 with an ERA of 3.92.
Since then, Hill has only managed 34 appearances over the past four seasons. The last two years he’s been a reliever for the Sox.
He seemed to have found his place in the pen, as he hasn’t allowed a run in 12 innings as a Red Sox reliever. Control issues had plagued Hill throughout his career, but he was able to maintain a 3.75 SO/BB ratio working in relief.
Boston has called up lefthander Tommy Hottovy from their AAA team to take Hill’s spot on the roster. Hottovy has been a solid reliever in the minors this year, holding a miniscule 1.67 ERA over 27 innings. The 29 year old has not allowed a hit to a lefty at the AAA level this year.