The White Sox announced Thursday afternoon that the club has signed lefty reliever Tim Hill to a one-year, $1.8MM contract, as first reported by Jeff Passan of ESPN (X link). A client of Paragon Sports International, Hill became a free agent when he was non-tendered by the Padres.
That ended a four-year run in San Diego. The Padres had acquired the sidewinder from the Royals just before the 2020 season, sending outfielder Franchy Cordero to Kansas City. As one would expect for a lefty pitching from a low arm angle, he worked largely as a situational bullpen option. The Padres leveraged him heavily against same-handed hitters, against whom he runs huge ground-ball tallies.
Hill posted decent results from 2020-22, combining for a 3.72 ERA over 125 2/3 innings. Things went off the rails last season. He was tagged for a personal-high 5.48 earned runs per nine over 48 appearances. That’s in part a reflection of a career-high .349 average on balls in play, but Hill’s strikeout rate has plummeted over the past two seasons.
After punching out nearly a quarter of opponents early in his career, he has fanned just under 13% of batters faced in each of the last two years. That combined with a spike in hard contact last season for the worst results of his career. San Diego let him go in lieu of a $2.4MM salary projection for his final year of arbitration.
It didn’t turn out too much worse for Hill in the end, as his salary with the White Sox is only $600K below the arbitration forecast. With over five years of major league service, the 33-year-old (34 in February) can no longer be sent to the minors. He’ll open the year in Pedro Grifol’s bullpen.
Hill offers a different look from hard-throwing Garrett Crochet, who projects as Chicago’s top southpaw. Despite fastball velocity that sits around 90 MPH, Hill has kept left-handed batters to a modest .228/.313/.328 slash over the past four seasons. Lefty batters have put the ball on the ground on nearly 65% of their batted balls over that stretch. Righties have predictably given him far more trouble, running a .298/.361/.475 batting line during Hill’s time in San Diego.
Chicago already has a full 40-man roster. Once they finalize their contract with Hill and a $4MM deal for catcher Martín Maldonado, they’ll need to create a pair of vacancies. The low-cost signings bring their 2024 payroll projection to roughly $149MM, as calculated by Roster Resource.
Image courtesy of USA Today Sports.
Hill should give the Sox a good 6th and 7th inning every other game. He will likely be relied upon heavy every week once Sox starters are pulled after the third inning every game…..
Lol
Then why didn’t the Padres keep him, 619MFM?
The same Padres that didn’t make the Playoffs with Soto, Tatis, Machado, Bogaerts, Snell, Darvish, Musgrove and Hader??? Those Padres???
Tim Hill is a solid add for the White Sox. We are starting to get some nice depth and potential in terms of arms. Gonna add more when we move Cease.
Is contending in 2024 on your mind? Because they’re really just clogging up slots instead of letting young guys play.
Why get Stassi AND Maldonado when you have Lee ready and Quero coming? They took the Braves bottom 5 40 man guys for Bummer. They’re going to DFA 2 more people off now. Lot of crap was on there so this likely won’t be consequential, but neither is an addition like this.
Tim Hill won’t be good enough to bring back a real prospect so this is just another body on the field. They threw Patino away already—-he’s probably nothing at this point, but the upside that he’s useful to a good Sox Club is much higher than Tim Hill.
How does what’s left of the White Sox cost $149MM????!
They’re short term acquisitions and Quero needs a full season at AAA so does Lee.
@Iron
Lee is over 800 PA’s at AAA now. How much more time does he need at that level?
& I was totally fine with Maldonado or Stassi. I think they needed a veteran catcher. What they didn’t need was 2 veteran catchers to block a guy like Lee.
They’re just clogging up the roster with bodies. This isn’t like signing a high upside rebound candidate that might get you a real return in July like the Royals did w/ Chapman. This is Tim Hill & Max Stassi.
Another former Royal.
Yep.
And Friar, too.
avenger is gonna love this one.
That ‘poor’ Reinsdorf is sparing no expense. Poor Jerry hasn’t made enough in franchise valuation to afford something more expensive. I mean between the Bulls and the Sox, a guy has to watch what he spends.
Yes, Jerry only had the greatest basketball player ever during the 6 championships the Bulls won in the 90s, but yes Jerry has no money…
He started as a tax attorney with the IRS. What did you expect.?
No one “makes” anything in franchise valuation, except the ability to borrow, until they actually sell the franchise.
Just like no one makes money in the stock market until they sell – right stymee? Thanks for the economics lesson – you’re a well rounded guy. What would I know without your insight?
Actually you just wasted 3 minutes of my life, Capt Obvious.
1 dime owed up front, $1,799,999.90 deferred.
How original. You’re also the 1,799,999th person to make this comment since the Ohtani deal.
The originality of it has been deferred.
I actually found FanofTheUmpires comment funny. You must be a fan of the moronic Smell-A Dodgers and their fake, fair weather, brain dead, fans?
Oh I see you’re a Cubs fan? (Even more pathetic). Chicago is also a crime ridden dump.
Who pee’d in your cereal this morning….or are you just naturally miserable and emit an unpleasant odor?
Its not like LA is crime free. Seems to be the favorite for crime dramas.
A bit ironic that Madre fans just started to show up at their litter box recently, while the Dodgers lead the league in attendance every year. It helps that the fair weather’s been going for over a decade. Cope and seethe….
I heard it was a portillo’s Italian beef with extra Au jus and a chocolate cake shake to wash it all down (which is very good but it’s a get once to try it time of shake)
Brother of Hank
Son of Rich?
Nephew of Michael?
Cousin of Lindsey actually, Clip!
‘Associate’ of Henry
LOL
I don’t get it
There will be a race to the ticket window now.
nice bounce-back move.
Good luck CWS! Hill lost a lot of stuff off the top and he was already lacking velo.
Sox usually do well on bouceback candidates. Random but true.
Just don’t let him throw to first base
He’s like Jon Lester? He can’t or won’t throw to 1st?
It’s mostly on balls in play; it seems like all his errors are on throws to first and they usually go up the RF line.
At least its not the LF line. That would be real bad.
Nah don’t wish the White Sox luck, Jerry needs to lose ticketholders and ad revenue so he can get a wakeup call. But thank you for the well wishes lol
It may just be me, but he looks like the 70s version of Josh Hader (ya know, huge ‘stache & perm).
Wait until you see the cocaine hat. He is a cancer survivor btw.
A guy that takes the ball every other day from the left side so he gets a few chances even though he hit a rough patch with Pads last year he was very reliable for most of his time in SD.
Bang! White Sox get their guy
Lol
Great guy. Very involved in the community. Just not a good pitcher anymore. Part of that may have been the injury and part of it Melvin’s insistence on using him against RHB too often. Whatever the cause was, he was unable to get the job done. I wish him well on the southside.
Our seats are behind the Pads dugout, so I was able to watch Melvin during a game in late summer (August). Hill had just pitched to 3 L hitters in a row, got two out, walked the other. Next up was a good RH hitter and Hill literally strode 1/3 of way to dugout looking at Melvin. Melvin waved him back out to mound, which was confusing to Hill. Hill then gave up a run-scoring double to break a tie game open. Next guy up was a LH hitter, and Melvin brought in Garcia, another double to break the game open. Melvin just figured he’d let Hill try to finish the inning. At that point in the season fans were getting frustrated with Melvin and the boos that ensued were obviously directed at him, not Hill or Garcia.
With a better in-game manager, the White Sox might get a lot out of Hill for $1.8M
Free advice for Grifol/CWS- Hill is really just a Loogy.
Grifol is so useless. Hill is coming to a sucky workplace sadly.
I’m in 109 but not close enough to get a good look at Melvin.
@Brew …
Unreal. Even Hill admits he’s a LOOGY, and always has been. Last searson, RHBs hit more than 100 points higher off him than LHBs, .378 to .275. For his career, righties hit him 60+ points better, .284 to .223. Those splits are outrageous.
Unfortunately, with the 3 batter rule, LOOGYs don’t get to only pitch to LH hitters anymore.
@stymee …
Exactly. Which severely limits Hill’s value.
Loogies can still pitch one outside sinker, induce the roll-over groundball to finish the inning and proceed to hit the showers.
Good managers don’t bring a LOOGY in to face 2 out of the next 3 batters that are RHB. Melvin did it multiple times and not once did it turn out well. He would also leave Hill in to face RHB after he had faced 3 batters already.
They can if they come in with 2 outs and a lefty batting.
@websoulsurfer…
I completely agree. Melvin went against common sense so often it seemed to imply that either he’s a total idiot (not likely), or he was following a scripted game plan from above. To his credit as a good “company man,” he accepted the blame in presser after presser, only rarely hinting that there were strategic decisions that weren’t his to make.
True. But that requires a manager that will use them only in that situation, and a GM willing to roster a “one batter” pitcher.
Games like the one in July in Pittsburgh where Hill was brought in with Garcia also warming up in the pen and a 4-2 lead to face Castro RHB, Triolo RHB, Delay RHB, then left in to face Suwinski LHB, McCutchen RHB, and Santana RHB. Padres down 5-4 at end of inning.
Or against the Nats where he was brought into the game to face Garcia, Meneses, and Candelario. 2 of 3 were RHB. He never got an out. Then Martinez was brought in to face LHB for 2 out of 1st 3 and of 4 out of first 5 batters.
That type of thing happened far too often. I remember another VS the Phillies where Hill was left in to make a close game out of reach while facing 3 RHB out of 6 with Martinez warming up in the pen.
Melvin was a terrible in-game manager of pitching.
Is that Craig Kimbrels dad?!( if you know you know)
I met Tim Hill and his girlfriend at a bar in San Diego last weekend.
He informed me this was going to happen.
Very happy for this guy!
He was the Padres Roberto Clemente Award Nominee in 2022.
He is also a cancer survivor..
Hill had a difficult 2023 season, but the stats are somewhat misleading, hence he had a 2.94 ERA through June 25 this year..
Hill also had perfect post-season stats for the Padres in 2020 and 2022 with a 1-0 record and a 0.00 ERA in 6 post-season games (also a 0.60 WHIP and 6 strikeouts in 5 innings).
Tim Hill will be a great addition to the White Sox clubhouse and the south side Chicago community
Don’t let his wife see this post!
Everything I have seen has said he is a great dude. I wish him luck on the south side.
During the 2023 season, Hill didn’t get rave reviews on the mound.
So-are we going to be the White Sox Royals or the Royal White Sox?
Could take a note from theAngels and be the Kansas City White Sox of Chicago…..
The Blue Sox?
I’d love to see them sign Jordan hicks
Same.
The article doesn’t mention if he can rake.
Not a horrible signing and they needed a lefty to replace Bummer. Curious to see which two get moved to create space.
Most of the moves I’m wasn’t upset about. The worse one is Paul Dejong in my opinion. I won’t be upset if white Sox lose 100 games unlike last season since we aren’t competing in ‘24. Maybe in ‘25 we have a decent team.
I like it as Bummer was Senor Gaslight as the Braves will soon find out if they deploy him as a loogy. Well played Getz, five for one and then a replacement. Not too shabby
Lol, this was a joke, correct?
Your a real baseball scholar Dumpster.
Rather than sign 20 free agents for $1 million each, why not sign one decent free agent for $20 million?
I like guys like Hill but managers have to be smart and use them sparingly.
Bullpens are all about changing the look and eye level of opposing teams, obviously a submarine lefty is going to give opposing teams a different look but you don’t want to use him twice in the same series unless you use him situationally.
Can you use him un-situationally? Every part of a ball game presents a situation.
Fun fact: Timms Hill is the highest point in Wisconsin.
Good for him.
Dumpster diving Getz!
At least the sox know where they are competitively.
(not competitive, free luis robert!)
Can’t root against ‘avg stuff’ sidearming lefties, unique angle, dudes done well sticking in league n making lil coin
Watch out Sox Hill can’t throw the ball when fielding .
He wasn’t good in 2023 with the Padres. Imagine being non tendered at that low annual salary.
This dude use to play in men’s Sunday league before he went back to college. He struck me out every time I faced him. GL in Chicago Tim!
White Sox winning free agency as per usual
Hard to imagine this working well, even for the pittance of $1.8m. A flukishly favorably HR% on fly balls (0.2%) masked the disastrous decline in Hill’s K rate in 2022. A return to normal in 2023 (3.5%) caused him to get pummeled, as he should have been a year earlier.
I just realized maybe four commenters pay attention to such stats. That explains so many of the site’s comments.
The smaller ballpark won’t help him, you say?
It all depends on how you use him. No bullpen is filled with great pitchers, you might have a handful of guys who are really solid but the rest are filled with guys like Hill.
If you bring Hill in after, say Cease, a hard throwing right hander, he will do alright. Bats are sped up and you’re changing arm angle and break.
As long as you are not trying to pitch him multiple innings and/or use him on back to back games he will be fine.
It’s the exact same scenario the Cubs had last season with Caus, except Ross started to foolishly believe Caus was more solid then he was and used him too often the last month.
Face it White Sox fans, the only ‘big moves’ by this org will be when players will be moved out of it for someone else’s cast offs, or guys this witless org will not be able to develop.
Someone also needs to remind ‘The Chairman’ and his puppet GM that you are not guaranteed for the #1 overall pick when you are the worst club in the league anymore.