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(Photo by Brian Westerholt/Four Seam Images)
From the moment he takes the mound, Gary Gill Hill commands your attention.
At 6-foot-2 and roughly 180 pounds, his body has both present strength and room for even more as he prepares to exit his teenage years. His movements are fluid and athletic, with an ease of operation that belies his whip-quick arm.
In warmups, the righthander shows an array of pitches designed to disarm hitters on both sides of the plate. His two-seamer and cutter get grounders with ease, while his four-seamer can be spotted up in the zone for swings and misses.
The fastballs are backed with a changeup which features separation and drop, and a developing breaking pitch with slider shape and curveball velocity.
He has the ingredients. Now, it’s time to cook.
The Rays selected Gill Hill in the sixth round of the 2022 draft, out of high school in New York, and pried him from a commitment to Fairleigh Dickinson with a bonus in the mid six-figures.
He didn’t pitch in his draft year, then spent 2023 mostly in the Florida Complex League before a late-season cameo at Low-A Charleston until a round of biceps tendinitis popped up.
Now, back at Charleston after an offseason to recover, Gill Hill has re-emerged with roughly 20 pounds of good weight as well as the corresponding strength boost.
This season, he’s racked up 34 strikeouts over his first 30 innings with the RiverDogs. He’s allowed just 22 hits, walked 10 and is getting grounders at a rate of nearly 65%.
Gill Hill’s projectable frame was part of what drew the interest of pro teams, and over the offseason he used a bit of home cooking to begin helping those premonitions become reality.
“I learned (to cook) myself when I got to pro ball,” Gill Hill said, noting that medium rare steak is one of his specialties. “I just learned how to cook.”
After all that steak—as well as some vegetables and carbs—Gill Hill’s fastball features a bit more sizzle. A year ago, his four-seamer topped out at 93 mph. This season, the pitch averages 94 mph and has already peaked at 98 mph.
Despite the extra heat, Gill Hill does not look like a pitcher airing it out on every pitch. The most impressive part of his outing, in fact, might have been the way he saved some of his best bolts for last.
Over the first…