Pittsburgh Pirates: What to Make of Rich Hill's First Start

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The Pittsburgh Pirates brought Rich Hill on a very rich deal for a 43-year-old. The veteran left-handed pitcher picked up a 1-year deal worth $8 million from the Pirates this past offseason. The team took some negative heat for the deal, with complaints about them handing out that large of a sum of money to a 43-year-old.

Well in his first start, Hill showed why the Bucs were so willing to bring in the veteran lefty. Hill started Saturday against the Cincinnati Reds, a game that did not look promising for Hill at first. It was a tough first inning with the lefty giving up a solo shot to Jonathan India then later in the inning he gave up a 2-run shot to Kevin Newman.

It was a quick three runs for the Reds. Anyone who said they did not immediately start to doubt Hill is probably lying. His fastball was in the upper 80s and he was giving up bombs. But Hill settled down nicely, which is probably one of the many reasons he is still pitching.

Many pitchers, especially the lesser experienced ones would likely unravel after a start to a game like that. Heck, back in 2019 we saw this happen to Mitch Keller in his debut in Cincinnati. That is one of the many reasons why Hill was signed by the Bucs.

So what questions should fans of the Pittsburgh Pirates still have about starter Rich Hill?

The Pittsburgh Pirates are looking at Hill to not only eat innings but also to be an example and potentially a mentor for many of the young arms. Of course, until the Trade Deadline at least. Hill, a crafty lefty, will most likely have a playoff team or two looking to bring him in. Especially if he keeps up what he did after the first inning against the Reds.

Hill would go on to get through 5 complete innings, something that has become rare for the Pirates starters. Also, he was able to strike out 7 hitters in those innings, showing he still has a devastating breaking pitch. He actually only conceded 3 total hits in his 5 innings of work.

It will be interesting to see if Rich Hill will be consistent with a few different things this year. One being whether or not he will continue to strike out more than a batter per innings if he does then that is great heading toward the Trade Deadline. The other question is whether or not the first-inning woes against the Reds will be something of a theme for Hill. While both home runs were very much aided by the ballpark they were runs nonetheless.

So what should we make of Rich Hill's first start? It was solid above all else. He gave up some runs in the first but kept the opposing team off the scoreboard for most of the game. The Pittsburgh Pirates offense did not help the cause much, which is going to need to happen in Hill's starts. He is not a dominant ace, he is a 43-year-old pitcher here to eat innings effectively, he did that Saturday.

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So what questions should fans of the Pittsburgh Pirates still have about starter Rich Hill?

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