Incredible Veteran Rich Hill Hits Fun Career Milestone as Part of Minor League Deal

Pitching for the ACL Royals on Tuesday, Hill recorded his 1,000th career minor league strikeout.

Boston Red Sox pitcher Rich Hill (44) pitches in the fifth inning against the Detroit Tigers at Comerica Park on Sept 1. | Rick Osentoski-Imagn Images

Longtime major league veteran Rich Hill hit a fun career milestone while playing for the Arizona Complex League Royals on Tuesday night.

According to minor league insider Benjamin Hill, Rich Hill struck his 1,000th career minor league hitter as part of a four-inning, seven strikeout performance. Hill recently signed a minor league deal with the Royals and is hoping to be a part of their roster as they chase a second consecutive playoff berth.

Rich Hill's first strikeout in this outing was the 1000th Minor League strikeout of his career! Hope they authenticated the baseball. https://t.co/0iDBfuEXO6

— Benjamin Hill (@bensbiz) May 21, 2025

Kansas City enters play on Wednesday at 27-23 through 50 games.

Hill, 45, has spent parts of 20 years in the big leagues already with 13 different teams. If he makes the Royals, he'll tie the MLB record of playing for 14 teams

Hill has appeared most frequently for the Boston Red Sox, playing parts of six seasons for his hometown team. He's also spent time with the Los Angeles Dodgers, Chicago Cubs, Cleveland Indians, Pittsburgh Pirates, Tampa Bay Rays, Baltimore Orioles, New York Yankees, Oakland Athletics, New York Mets, San Diego Padres, Minnesota Twins and Los Angeles Angels.

A true late-bloomer, Hill re-invented himself in his 30s. He won 11 games with the Cubs in 2007 but then didn't win double-digit games again until 2016 with the Athletics and Dodgers. Lifetime, he's 90-74 with a 4.01 ERA. He's appeared in 386 games, earning 248 starts.

He made four appearances for the Red Sox last season. Hill has spent parts of 19 seasons in the minors, and it all began in 2022 with Boise. He has thrown 770.1 minor league innings.

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