Assesment on Hill, so far?

[A New Era]

im happy for him (and us), but lets not get our britches all wet just yet, it was the Pirates after all.

 

Sorry, britches pre-soaked.

[Soriano12]

but lets not get our britches all wet just yet, it was the Pirates after all.

 

 

:oops: :oops:

 

I peed my pants after his 10th K tonight.

[abuck1220]

im happy for him (and us), but lets not get our britches all wet just yet, it was the Pirates after all.

 

and the giants before that, the cardinals before that, the phillies before that, the astros before that, the pirates before that, the dbacks before that, and the cardinals before that.

 

last eight outings...

 

50 ip, 36 h, 15 er, 14 bb, 45 k's, whip of 1.00, era of 2.70.

 

just for fun, if you throw out his one bad start, those seven outings come out to...

 

45 1/3 ip, 30 h, 9 er, 9 bb, 43 k's, whip of .86, era of 1.79.

 

edited for math mistake.

Edited September 7, 2006 by abuck1220

[TruffleShuffle]

im happy for him (and us), but lets not get our britches all wet just yet, it was the Pirates after all.

 

and the giants before that, the cardinals before that, the phillies before that, the astros before that, the pirates before that, the dbacks before that, and the cardinals before that.

 

last eight outings...

 

50 ip, 36 h, 13 er, 14 bb, 45 k's, whip of 1.00, era of 2.34.

 

just for fun, if you throw out his one bad start, those seven outings come out to...

 

45 1/3 ip, 30 h, 7 er, 9 bb, 43 k's, whip of .86, era of 1.39.

 

Yeah but guys have had a good stretch without turning it into a consistently good career. I think we're seeing that Hill is not just a AAAA pitcher like some thought (probably some within the Cubs' organization as well). And, many people have said that his ceiling is a #3/4 starter. I think that, with his strikeout rate and H/9 rate, that he actually could be a #2 starter if everything turned out right - which, this being the Cubs, it won't.

[abuck1220]

just watched the game on tivo, and that's some of the best stuff i've ever seen hill have. he was dropping 2-0 curves in for strikes, buckling knees with both his curve and his fb, and how about that sidearm fb he k'ed duffy with?? i don't think i've ever seen him throw that before.

 

and he broke the cub record for k's in a game by a lefthander.

[Sammy Sofa]

im happy for him (and us), but lets not get our britches all wet just yet, it was the Pirates after all.

 

and the giants before that, the cardinals before that, the phillies before that, the astros before that, the pirates before that, the dbacks before that, and the cardinals before that.

 

last eight outings...

 

50 ip, 36 h, 13 er, 14 bb, 45 k's, whip of 1.00, era of 2.34.

 

just for fun, if you throw out his one bad start, those seven outings come out to...

 

45 1/3 ip, 30 h, 7 er, 9 bb, 43 k's, whip of .86, era of 1.39.

 

Yeah but guys have had a good stretch without turning it into a consistently good career. I think we're seeing that Hill is not just a AAAA pitcher like some thought (probably some within the Cubs' organization as well). And, many people have said that his ceiling is a #3/4 starter. I think that, with his strikeout rate and H/9 rate, that he actually could be a #2 starter if everything turned out right - which, this being the Cubs, it won't.

 

True, but we're not seeing, say, Jerome Williams at the end of 2005 or even Marshall in 2006. What Hill is doing is out and out dominating his opponents. It really is impressive, to say the least.

[jmajew]

Rich Hill is starting to make me feel a lot more comfortable about our rotation next year. I do, however, wish he could develop another pitch but lets not be picky here. A rotation of Zambrano, FA/Trade, Hill, Prior, Marshall/Guzman/Gallagher looks like a pretty solid rotation to me for next year.

 

Now only if we could do something about this offense...Murton looks like he may have gaurenteed himself a spot in the everyday lineup again.

[WeberJazz]

Hill is starting to become a silver lining in this otherwise dismal season. His starts are basically the only thing I've looked forward to the last couple of weeks.

 

One thing that has surprised me now that I've seen him a couple times is that his fastball seems to be better than advertised. He seems to get good life on it late in the zone and his velocity is better than I expected given what I had read here on the board.

 

I would say his fastball is better than Zito's though Zito's is more effective as he off-sets it so well with his filthy change. If Hill could develop a solid change, I see no reason why his ceiling couldn't be as a 2.

[WeberJazz]

Hill is starting to become a silver lining in this otherwise dismal season. His starts are basically the only thing I've looked forward to the last couple of weeks.

 

One thing that has surprised me now that I've seen him a couple times is that his fastball seems to be better than advertised. He seems to get good life on it late in the zone and his velocity is better than I expected given what I had read here on the board.

 

I would say his fastball is better than Zito's though Zito's is more effective as he off-sets it so well with his filthy change. If Hill could develop a solid change, I see no reason why his ceiling couldn't be as a 2.

[WeberJazz]

Hill is starting to become a silver lining in this otherwise dismal season. His starts are basically the only thing I've looked forward to the last couple of weeks.

 

One thing that has surprised me now that I've seen him a couple times is that his fastball seems to be better than advertised. He seems to get good life on it late in the zone and his velocity is better than I expected given what I had read here on the board.

 

I would say his fastball is better than Zito's though Zito's is more effective as he off-sets it well with his filthy change. If Hill could develop a solid change, I see no reason why his ceiling couldn't be as a 2.

[imb]

I didnt realize that his last month and a half had been so strong.

 

Hopefully he can carry this strong stretch into 2007, god knows we need it.

[RockTheIvy]

I'm eating my words. A full plate full of crow, if you will.

 

I thought Hill was a "one trick pony," but boy was I wrong. If Prior can get healthy and stay healthy, then we should have some decent starting pitching next year. Hopefully, we can use the money on the offense.

[Balsa]

I'd trade him as part of a package for Miguel Cabrera.

 

Maybe Hill, Moore, and Aardsma?

[C.C.]

That was just beautiful to watch! It must be how he looks in AAA. Keep it up kid!

[CuseCubFan69]

I like the fact that the Cubs had him in AAA to start and let him build up his confidence. IMO if he got bombed early and often at the MLB level his confidence would have been shot.

[CUBZ99]

I like the fact that the Cubs had him in AAA to start and let him build up his confidence. IMO if he got bombed early and often at the MLB level his confidence would have been shot.

 

I agree, for once the Cubs organization seems to have done something right with a prospect.

[C.C.]

The only thing I still worry about Hill is how does he pitch under pressure? I mean it's easy to pitch for a last place team that is playing for nothing.

But then again, he may never have to worry about playing for something, as long as he pitches for the Cubs...

[Sammy Sofa]

The only thing I still worry about Hill is how does he pitch under pressure? I mean it's easy to pitch for a last place team that is playing for nothing.

But then again, he may never have to worry about playing for something, as long as he pitches for the Cubs...

 

I think he's smart enough to realize that he was reaching a critical point with his lack of success in the majors and his age...he needed to win to keep his job, basically. That's some pressure on anyone...granted, it's not the same as playoff/WS pressure, but it's not like he could have just coasted along and everything would have been fine.

[gflore34]

Watched BT last night and of course, they were ready to award the Cy Young to Anibal Sanchez along with anointing the Marlin as Baseball' Best. But, back to the point, they showed some of Sanchez' stats over his last six starts:

 

41 IP, 28 K, 1.83 ERA (including the No Hitter) so, I looked at Hill' last six starts:

 

WL IP H ER K ERA

2-2 35 25 11 30 2.83

 

Not as good as BT's newly appointed greatest picther of all time but, not bad.

Think anyone' noticed beyond us? BT - why do I watch this crap?

[Deeg]

FTR, Hill does have a third pitch -a cutter, which he's been using several times a game against RHP mainly. He doesn't throw it much, but he hasn't needed to lately.

 

As for Zito, yeah - figure he's getting $15 million. Or more. He's a model of consistency - his delivery is smooth and repeatable and he's never had a major arm problem. All he does is throw a ton of innings, win, and post sub 4.0 ERAs in the AL. He's a stud.

[Laura]

Not sure if this has been posted, but the Cubs record for single-game Ks by a Left-Handed Pitcher is 12 by Jamie Moyer in this game in 1987. Moyer pitched 8 innings and walked 6.

 

Further surfing of retrosheet indicates that Holtzman matched that as a Cub a few times; Moyer's must be the most recent performance.

 

 

I'm going to temporarily lock this thread in order to split and move the free agent starting pitchers discussion to Transactions ... Done, the split thread is "07 Starting Rotation Options (split from Hill)" in the Transactions Forum.

[CubinNY]

The only thing I still worry about Hill is how does he pitch under pressure? I mean it's easy to pitch for a last place team that is playing for nothing.

But then again, he may never have to worry about playing for something, as long as he pitches for the Cubs...

 

Are you freaking kidding?

 

After his poor start of the season, demotion to the bullpen, and demotion to AAA, every start is a pressure situation.

 

Pressure is an individual phenomenon not a team or group one.

 

When I am golfing and am lining up a 4 foot put for par, with no money on the line, no crowd, and just my friends watching is one of the biggest pressure situation I face on a weekly basis.

[C.C.]

The only thing I still worry about Hill is how does he pitch under pressure? I mean it's easy to pitch for a last place team that is playing for nothing.

But then again, he may never have to worry about playing for something, as long as he pitches for the Cubs...

 

Are you freaking kidding?

 

After his poor start of the season, demotion to the bullpen, and demotion to AAA, every start is a pressure situation.

 

Pressure is an individual phenomenon not a team or group one.

 

When I am golfing and am lining up a 4 foot put for par, with no money on the line, no crowd, and just my friends watching is one of the biggest pressure situation I face on a weekly basis.

 

I don't agree with you. Even if he failed this time around he would've gotten serveral more shots at the bigs because of his stats in the minors. Todd Walker once said it's easy to play for smaller market teams that draw no fans because there is no pressure. Playing for Boston and NY is far more pressure, where you are expected to excel from day 1 and expected to win.

[TruffleShuffle]

The only thing I still worry about Hill is how does he pitch under pressure? I mean it's easy to pitch for a last place team that is playing for nothing.

But then again, he may never have to worry about playing for something, as long as he pitches for the Cubs...

 

Are you freaking kidding?

 

After his poor start of the season, demotion to the bullpen, and demotion to AAA, every start is a pressure situation.

 

Pressure is an individual phenomenon not a team or group one.

 

When I am golfing and am lining up a 4 foot put for par, with no money on the line, no crowd, and just my friends watching is one of the biggest pressure situation I face on a weekly basis.

 

I don't agree with you. Even if he failed this time around he would've gotten serveral more shots at the bigs because of his stats in the minors. Todd Walker once said it's easy to play for smaller market teams that draw no fans because there is no pressure. Playing for Boston and NY is far more pressure, where you are expected to excel from day 1 and expected to win.

 

Yeah but he's a Cub, so he's clearly not expected to excel.

[CubinNY]

The only thing I still worry about Hill is how does he pitch under pressure? I mean it's easy to pitch for a last place team that is playing for nothing.

But then again, he may never have to worry about playing for something, as long as he pitches for the Cubs...

 

Are you freaking kidding?

 

After his poor start of the season, demotion to the bullpen, and demotion to AAA, every start is a pressure situation.

 

Pressure is an individual phenomenon not a team or group one.

 

When I am golfing and am lining up a 4 foot put for par, with no money on the line, no crowd, and just my friends watching is one of the biggest pressure situation I face on a weekly basis.

 

I don't agree with you. Even if he failed this time around he would've gotten serveral more shots at the bigs because of his stats in the minors. Todd Walker once said it's easy to play for smaller market teams that draw no fans because there is no pressure. Playing for Boston and NY is far more pressure, where you are expected to excel from day 1 and expected to win.

 

I don't know how to respond other than asking you about when you feel pressure. Is it becuase of the situation or becuase of what others say about the situation?

 

BTW- I would think that pitching in Wrigley in front of a packed house, for a manager and GM who haven't exactly "had his back" is a pretty big pressure situation.

 

How much pressure do you think Anibel Sanchez had last night when he was pitching in front of 30,000 empty seats?