Hill happy to have his second chance
Koyie Hill may have been the happiest call up of all when the Chicago Cubs expanded their roster Monday for the final month of the season.
Just to be in a major league uniform – any baseball uniform really – seemed unlikely a little more than 10 months ago when Hill nearly lost three fingers and the thumb on his right hand in a table saw accident.
A specialist was able to reattach all four after they were severed and Hill made a miraculous comeback after hours of therapy and a long relearning process that included sessions with Triple-A Iowa hitting coach Von Josuha.
“I had to learn how to give high fives all over again. Everything is different,” Hill said.
Hill was so determined to play again he said he considered having his pinkie that had been greatly damaged amputated so he could grip the ball better when he threw, an essential part of a catcher’s game.
After a slow start in Triple-A that produced self doubts, Hill warmed up when the weather did. The first cold months were very difficult.
“I felt like I had frozen carrots for fingers,” he said.
Hill played 36 games for the Cubs in 2007. This season, as he fought his way back, he found a way to not only throw with his rearranged hand where the fingers are still discolored and crooked, he was able to hit well after working with Joshua.
He batted .275 with 17 home runs and 64 RBIs in 113 games for Iowa, earning a call back to the majors.
“I sat in a doctor’s office here in Chicago in December and he looked right at me and said he didn’t think I was going to play again. You got some of the best people (saying) ‘I just don’t know, I don’t see it, but good luck,’ ” Hill said.
“In the back of my mind I always knew if I got the opportunity to play like I did, the Cubs kept me in the lineup down there, I knew I was going to be able to do it. I knew it was going to be hard and it looked ugly at the beginning.”
N.L. highlights
Mets 4, Brewers 2: At Milwaukee, Carlos Delgado’s two-run home run off Eric Gagne in the eighth inning propelled New York over the Brewers.
Milwaukee starter Ben Sheets pitched five scoreless innings but left the game due to tightness in his left groin. The extent of the injury was not immediately known.
Nationals 7, Phillies 4: At Washington, Ryan Zimmerman hit a two-run home run and the Nationals beat Philadelphia.
The Phillies dropped two games behind the Mets in the N.L. East.
Diamondbacks 8, Cardinals 6: At Phoenix, Stephen Drew became the first player to hit for the cycle in Chase Field, and newly acquired David Eckstein singled home the winning run to help Arizona rally past St. Louis.
Dodgers 5, Padres 2: At Los Angeles, Greg Maddux tied Roger Clemens for eighth place on the career list with his 354th victory, leading the Dodgers over San Diego.
Los Angeles trails Arizona by 21/2 games in the N.L. West
A.L. highlights
Indians 5, White Sox 0: At Cleveland, Cliff Lee became Cleveland’s first 20-game winner in 34 years, pitching a five-hitter for his second career shutout to lead the Indians over Chicago.
Lee is the first Indians pitcher to reach 20 wins since Hall of Famer Gaylord Perry went 21-13 in 1974. The left-hander’s milestone win – his ninth straight victory – came exactly one year to the day that he was recalled from the minor leagues.
Red Sox 7, Orioles 4: At Boston, Dustin Pedroia’s two-run single capped a four-run sixth inning, Paul Byrd pitched seven efficient innings and the Red Sox beat Baltimore.
Boston pulled to within five games behind the idle Tampa Bay Rays in the A.L. East. The Red Sox increased their lead to three games in the A.L. wild card race over Chicago and Minnesota.