The Dodgers announced today that they’ve placed left-hander Rich Hill on the 10-day disabled list due to a blister on his left middle finger. Righty Josh Fields has been recalled from Triple-A to fill Hill’s spot on the roster.
The oft-injured Hill has dealt with blisters in the past and missed time with the issue after joining the Dodgers in 2016 as well. Despite his frequent injuries and questionable durability, Hill’s elite performance since improbably resurfacing in the Majors late in the 2015 season prompted the Dodgers to ink him to a three-year, $48MM contract this offseason. Hill is only a week into that sizable contract, but he’s already demonstrated both the upside and frustration that come along with that deal. The 37-year-old tossed five innings of one-run ball with five punchouts in his season debut, and while outings of that caliber figure to be frequent when healthy, today’s news is yet another reminder that he’s long stood out as an injury risk.
The shortened 10-day term of the disabled list in the 2017 season makes it easier for the Dodgers to briefly shelve the left-hander and tap into their considerable minor league pitching depth, however. Fields will give skipper Dave Roberts another arm to help compensate for the hopefully abbreviated loss of Hill. The Dodgers have an off-day next Tuesday, as well, which could help them to manage their rotation in Hill’s absence. Andy McCullough of the L.A. Times tweets that pitching coach Rick Honeycutt said that Alex Wood could get a spot start in Hill’s place next Monday. McCullough also tweets that Roberts said lefty Julio Urias won’t be considered for next Monday’s outing, despite being slated to start in Triple-A that day.
Is no one surprised by this?
I am. I mean, after just ONE game?
… frustrating. Hill will make 20 starts this year.
If he makes 20 starts, I’d say there’s a good chance that he’s worth the $16MM this season.
That kind of depends on how he pitches in those 20 starts, no?
It does, but I believe that’s why he said there’s a good chance he’s worth it, instead of he’s definitely worth it if he makes 20 starts.
He missed a lot of time last year but was still worth far more than his contract. I’d be on Steve’s side that if he makes 20 starts he will be worth it. Of course, there’s no guarantee of that performance or that he will even make 20 starts.
“It does, but I believe that’s why he said there’s a good chance he’s worth it, instead of he’s definitely worth it if he makes 20 starts.”
Yeah poor reading on my part. I realized that afterwards. My fault Steve.
Yes the valves
I don’t get this “worth” thing. If a team is playing for a postseason appearance what is the relevance of a cost-benefit analysis of any given player’s salary?
Wow Steve, you really think he’s worth almost $1 Million a start if he actually does start 20 times!!!! Very generous on your part.
Your invitations to my birthday and Christmas are in the mail to you.
if he started 20 times that would be $800K per start. Here are what some other SPs would get paid in 2017 if they made 30 starts:
Kershaw – $1.2mil
Greinke – $1.1mil
Price – $1mil
Verlander – $933K
King Felix – $900K
CC – $833K
Lester – $833K
Cueto – $783
Hamels – $750K
You can debate whether or not baseball players should be paid that much money, but you can’t debate that $800K per start from a high end SP is fair market value right now.
Rich Hill in no way is in most of those guys class!
Hill has a 2.06 ERA in his last 25 starts. Sure I’d rather have a lot of those guys over Hill (probably not Greinke, CC, or Hamels…), but he’s worth $800k a start in this market.
You might have to take Grienke or Hamels at the price and length of Hill’s contract though.
rocky7:
You send people invitations to Christmas?
Wow, Hallmark must love you….
He is 37 this year and this is year 1 of a 3 yr, $48mm commitment ..
If his 20 starts this year are all between August and October, his contract is a bargain.. if they are chopped on/off and he is not available (or in top form) for the postseason, this is 1st year of a very bad contract.
Good for him that he got the $48mm… only ‘Dodger money’ would view this as a bargain
That didn’t take long.
He had all offseason to make sure this wouldn’t happen again, and failed.
Are we sure he failed or is this roster manipulation with the day off on Tuesday.
how exactly does one make sure they don’t get blisters from pitching?
I’m pretty sure he was joking.
Question … is ‘spray on skin’ (ie super glue ‘plus’) illegal for pitchers to use on their fingertips? (It is not doctoring the ‘ball’)
Bauer wasn’t allowed anything for that pinky.
Hahahahaa
. .
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Wood hit 95 during his relief appearance. Dodgers will be fine regardless.
Beckett also had terrible blister problems with the marlins. never again with Boston and probably not the LAD. Boston treated them properly and put him on a regimen after each start for his right hand. Maybe the LAD should just ask Becket what that was and put Hill on the same thing??
Maybe it was the same way Moises Alou hardened his hands so he wouldn’t have to wear batting gloves?
Ha ha, I forgot about the Moises solution.
Yuck!
real problem. 3 years for 45 and he can’t stop getting blisters
Did the Dodgers do enough to improve? Or are they the same over-rated team that got beat in the NLCS, just a bit more expensive?
Their payroll is actually less this year.
I was mostly referring the guys still there (weren’t they paying a good amount of money for guys not on the roster last year?).
How are they over rated if they made it to game 6 with the cubs? They can compete with anyone in the NL in a 7 game series. 2nd best team in the NL is not a stretch
Becoming an on paper favorite over the Cubs would be a difficult task. I think they’ve done a good job positioning themselves in the top 3 in NL along with Cubs and Nationals. Nationals have been an on paper favorite many of the last handful of years and they have nothing to show for it. They have positioned themselves well, maybe this is the year the Nationals or Dodgers win it.
He’s going to need to take up guitar playing or wood work
Needs to get an offseason job doing masonry work.
He’d never pitch again if he did that haha
Im just glad his issue is blisters. Not shoulder, arm or elbow stuff *knock on wood
trade for quintana
Good idea!
Dig. Bellinger’s a stud, but also isn’t really necessary, they’re stacked with options the White Sox could use. Any two of Bellinger, Verdugo & Sierra and then add Trayce Thompson, to make it a 3-1, is pretty fair for Quintana.
Hahaha they aren’t trading Bellinger. And they aren’t trading for Q. The staff is chalked with LHP. If they do make a move it’ll be for a guy Odorizzi or more likely for an expiring contract guy like Cobb.
It was awesome with the A’s… Shelved at the very end… Same issues…
In other news… it snowed today, so it was wet outside.
And … here . We . Go.
Dude needs to start pitching with a batting glove at this point.
Time to take out Wood from the pitcher bag.