Forty-five-year-olds appear in charity and old-timers baseball games all the time, but most of them haven’t pitched in the big leagues less than a month prior.
The Kansas City Royals designated 21-year Major League Baseball veteran Rich Hill for assignment on July 29, only a week after he was selected from Triple-A. He made only two appearances in the big leagues after spending nearly three months in the minors waiting for an opportunity.
However, Hill now has his next in-game appearance on the docket. It’s just not quite against the same level of competition.
The Oldtime Baseball Game is a Massachusetts summer institution. It began in 1994, and every year, players from Boston area college teams, former big-leaguers, and local celebrities gather at St. Peter’s Field in North Cambridge, Mass. to play ball in old-school flannel uniforms and raise money for charity.
The 32nd installment of the Oldtime Baseball Game was moved at the last minute to be played on Thursday, and former Boston Red Sox fan favorite Brock Holt, who was scheduled to appear, had a scheduling conflict. But on Wednesday, The Athletic’s Steve Buckley announced on social media that Hill would be taking Holt’s place.
Hill has pitched 388 games in the big leagues, including 74 for the Red Sox. The Boston native attended Milton H.S. in Milton, Mass. and pitched for his hometown team as recently as last season.
It’s worth taking a minute to click through some of the uniforms worn at this game, too. On this page alone, you can find examples of garb inspired by the 1914 Brooklyn Tip-Tops, 1922 Wichita Falls Spudders, and 1940 Cienfuegos Elefantes.
Imagine heading back to college after the summer and getting to tell your friends and teammates you got a base knock against a big-leaguer who was facing the Atlanta Braves less than a month ago? If anyone can get the best of Hill on Thursday (assuming he takes the mound), they’ll get to do exactly that.
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