Los Angeles Dodgers: Solving the Starting Rotation Mess
By Sunit Bhakta
Solid Number Two: Rich Hill
Fresh off of signing a three-year $48 million contract, expectations are high for the soon-to-be 37-year old. Hill struggled with injury last season but when he was healthy, he showed why the Los Angeles rewarded him with the contract that they did. He finished with a 2.12 ERA, 0.997 WHIP, and 10.5 k/9 across 20 starts last season, so the problem going forward doesn’t seem to be talent, rather health.
Hill has shown the capability of acting as the second fiddle to Clayton Kershaw, so everyone from the front office to Dodger Nation is (obviously) praying that he avoids any injuries or injury scares. He has never broken the 200 inning barrier and has only one season where he made at least 30 starts. His second highest in terms of games started was last year. Even with that, he only managed 110.1 innings. He will not have to carry a rotation so all he has to do is worry about staying healthy and pitching. His contract will obviously mount some pressure but at least he isn’t getting paid huge money to be the guy for a historic franchise under the bright lights of the second largest market in the United States. He could be what Zack Greinke was from 2013-2015, just much cheaper.
The Los Angeles Dodgers are counting on him to act as the second ace because (unless young Julio Urias is fully unleashed) they do not have anyone who can possibly perform like one. Kenta Maeda is a solid pitcher but best suited as a mid-rotation arm. Dating back to his four starts in 2015 (24 total starts since), Rich Hill has been one of the top pitchers in the game so couple that with $48 million and it is only natural that the expectations are sky-high.