Derek

Hill

With his left shoulder leading the way, Hill crashed into the wall pretty good on Luke Maile’s homer in the first. However, he remained in both then and after getting checked at first base on following his single in the second. He wound up finishing the 15-1 loss with his first ever infield appearance after Garrett Stubbs, who had replaced Bryce Harper at first in the blowout, moved to the mound to finish out the game. He’d played the outfield exclusively in 666 minor league games and 198 as a major leaguer.

Hill capped off a five-run uprising in the ninth inning with a 441-foot (109.8-mph EV) two-run shot off of Gus Varland. He also struck out after entering as a pinch-hitter in the seventh. For the season, the 30-year-old outfielder is now hitting .250/.304/.442 with six homers and 13 RBI in 114 plate appearances between the Phillies and White Sox.

Hill came off the bench to deliver a clutch blast against Nationals lefty Richard Lovelady with the Phillies down to their final out of the contest after Kyle Schwarber (back) worked a 10-pitch walk to keep the game going. The 30-year-old was acquired from the White Sox earlier this month in a small trade and will continue occupying a bench role.

Hill was likely going to be designated for assignment by the White Sox with Everson Pereira returning on Thursday, so they opted to flip him for anything they could get at this point. The 30-year-old outfielder has hit .213/.284/.375 with four homers, eight RBI and seven stolen bases in 90 plate appearances with the White Sox this season. He’ll add insurance for the Phillies in the event that Adolis Garcia (shoulder) requires a trip to the injured list.

Doesn’t sound like it’s great news for the Phillies on Adolis García’s shoulder injury. Hill was pushed out of a role with the White Sox by the promotion of Braden Montgomery and was a potential DFA candidate with Everson Pereira slated to come off the injured list soon, so it’s good work by the White Sox to get prospects for him.

Hill returns following a three-game absence due to a lingering back issue that surfaced last Friday. The 30-year-old is in center field and hitting sixth against Minnesota rookie lefty Connor Prielipp on Tuesday night at Target Field.

Hill hasn’t played since last Friday due to a lingering back issue. The fact that he hasn’t hit the injured list seems to signal that it’s not a significant concern. The 30-year-old backup outfielder is presumably available off the bench, if needed.

It’ll be rookie outfielder Rikuu Nishida taking over in center field and hitting ninth. It sounds like a precautionary move by the White Sox to prevent the issue from getting worse. Hill should be considered day-to-day heading into Sunday’s series finale.

Hill’s 417-foot homer to center was his longest batted ball since he hit 432- and 420-foot homers at Coors Field on Aug. 29, 2024. He’s gone 11-for-44 with three homers and four steals while starting strictly against lefties this season. He’s played in 31 games and taken 50 plate appearances.

Kelenic, once one of the most exciting prospects in baseball, will head back to the big leagues after having just 65 MLB plate appearances last season. The 26-year-old has not gotten off to a great start in Triple-A, slashing .202/.346/.464 with six home runs and seven steals in 104 plate appearances. The steals and home runs are nice, but he’s sporting a nearly 29 percent strikeout rate and 74 percent contact rate that could get exposed at the big league level. With a lefty on the mound on Wednesday, it will be Derek Hill starting in right field, not Kelenic.