Speaker 1: Right now, we are joined by a man that Dodger
Speaker 1: fans loved when he was on the mound for them.
Speaker 1: Four great years, the four best years of his life
Speaker 1: were spent in southern California from twenty seventeen, you know,
Speaker 1: twenty sixteen to twenty nineteen. And he's a guy that
Speaker 1: is America's pitcher And it was evident, and it came
Speaker 1: to fruition pitching for Mike Soosha and Team USA this
Speaker 1: past offseason. And it is the one and only Rich
Speaker 1: Hill joining us from Massachusetts. Even though he won't disclose
Speaker 1: the exact location. He is in Beantown calling into Dodger Talk. Rich,
Speaker 1: thanks a lot for the time. Appreciate it, David, thank
Speaker 1: you for having me on. It's great to hear your voice,
Speaker 1: Rich And I know everybody loves hearing your voice.
Speaker 2: Oh well, it's great to hear your voice and great
Speaker 2: to get back in touch with the Dodger fans. Yeah.
Speaker 2: You hit the nail on the head with some of
Speaker 2: the best years in baseball that I've been able to
Speaker 2: experience was in a Dodger uniform and pitching. Uh, you know,
Speaker 2: obviously at that that great ballpark in LA that's that's uh,
Speaker 2: you know Dodger stadiums. Everybody always asked me, what's your
Speaker 2: favorite park to pitch in? And and uh, Dodger Stadium
Speaker 2: is right up there as number one.
Speaker 1: You played for eleven different teams and still counting the Dodgers.
Speaker 2: Were thirteen thirteen, thirteen thirteen.
Speaker 1: I'm sorry, the list is very long and distinguished. I
Speaker 1: apologize long.
Speaker 2: It's like it's like a receipt from CVS.
Speaker 1: Yes, no doubt, no doubt it is. But when you
Speaker 1: look back at your time with the Dodgers, riche Uh,
Speaker 1: what are the fondest memories? I mean, you came close
Speaker 1: to two no hitters, You had such great chemistry with
Speaker 1: so many guys on this team that last to this day.
Speaker 1: What stands out to you the most of those years?
Speaker 2: Yeah, I think the friendships were built over the years. Uh.
Speaker 2: You know when we were in LA, just the camaraderie
Speaker 2: with those teams, the fans, you know, that was that
Speaker 2: was We had such good teams obviously, and we won
Speaker 2: and that brought you know, the fans out to come
Speaker 2: and watch us play. But just the intensity that the
Speaker 2: fans brought and the love that they have for the
Speaker 2: Dodgers and you know then emanated over into the clubhouse.
Speaker 2: And then obviously you know, for me on an own,
Speaker 2: my own you know, personal performance wise, I you know,
Speaker 2: wanted to leave everything out there on the field every
Speaker 2: time I got the opportunity to pitch, you know, for
Speaker 2: them and also for the you know guys in the
Speaker 2: clubhouse because they were doing the same thing on a
Speaker 2: nightly basis. And that's what made it so much fun
Speaker 2: is just seeing the effort that the guys were putting
Speaker 2: forth night in and night out, and you know, to
Speaker 2: do it in that stadium with those fans, Uh, it
Speaker 2: really is special. And and you know, to everybody now
Speaker 2: with the success that is going on, really enjoy it
Speaker 2: because you know it's something that again being from this
Speaker 2: area where I'm at right now in Boston, there was
Speaker 2: a tremendous amount of success for a long time with
Speaker 2: a lot of Boston franchises here. But you know, it
Speaker 2: comes and goes, so you really have to appreciate it
Speaker 2: while it's going on. And I know that the Dodger
Speaker 2: fans certainly do do that.
Speaker 1: Hey, Rich, You're one hundred percent right. Nothing stays the same,
Speaker 1: it's always changing. I was thinking about this the other day.
Speaker 1: That's how sick I am. I wasn't thinking about my kids,
Speaker 1: I wasn't thinking about my wife. I was thinking about
Speaker 1: the two biggest sports disappointments in my life in Los
Speaker 1: Angeles sports and the nineteen eighty four Lakers losing giving
Speaker 1: that series of way to the Celtics is at the top,
Speaker 1: and a close second is twenty seventeen for a number
Speaker 1: of different reasons. Obviously we know the Astros were cheating,
Speaker 1: but for you, you were so close to winning the
Speaker 1: World Series. How much do you think about twenty seventeen?
Speaker 2: Yeah, I think, you know, I think a lot of
Speaker 2: it will be thought about post career, post playing and
Speaker 2: when everything's all said and done, and looking back on
Speaker 2: certain moments, and you know, talking about how my career
Speaker 2: has kind of ebbed and flowed and had a lot
Speaker 2: of milestones of perseverance through it and understanding how to
Speaker 2: continue to keep moving forward when you get knocked down.
Speaker 2: But yeah, I definitely think about twenty seventeen because that's
Speaker 2: a culmination of many careers to be able to win
Speaker 2: a World Series, and I think all the personal accolades
Speaker 2: that come along with playing fall in the face of
Speaker 2: winning a World Series, you know, and really throughout that
Speaker 2: whole twenty seventeen and into twenty eighteen, those two seasons,
Speaker 2: you know, again, even though we didn't get a chance
Speaker 2: to raise the trophy, and you know, see the top
Speaker 2: of the mountain, you know, at the end of those seasons,
Speaker 2: it's who we became throughout the process. So I think
Speaker 2: that's that's something when we look back on it, and
Speaker 2: I look back on twenty seventeen, it's it's really the
Speaker 2: perspective that has gained of understanding, you know, the hard work,
Speaker 2: the perseverance, what it takes to you know, the the
Speaker 2: ingredients into a championship season. So really understanding it from
Speaker 2: that perspective puts everything kind of in a better light
Speaker 2: for me.
Speaker 1: What do you remember the most after being in that
Speaker 1: clubhouse with your teammates after Game seven of the seventeen
Speaker 1: World Series I heard a few of you hung around
Speaker 1: and just kind of chopped it up. What do you
Speaker 1: remember about that experience?
Speaker 2: Yeah, I mean it was very emotional. I think you know,
Speaker 2: you put in one hundred and sixty two games plus
Speaker 2: you know, forty five days in spring training and entire
Speaker 2: off season. Uh, you know that the team has been
Speaker 2: built to win. Uh, you know, we want to. I
Speaker 2: think we won what one hundred and seven games that
Speaker 2: year or something, and you know, at the time one
Speaker 2: of the best teams of all time in Major League history. Uh.
Speaker 2: And and to fall short, you know, it was it
Speaker 2: was a very emotional experience. And uh that's why you
Speaker 2: play the game though, and and to have that kind
Speaker 2: of uh peel back to curtain or or understand why
Speaker 2: we are doing this or you know, it's not for
Speaker 2: it's not for financial gain. It's not for you know,
Speaker 2: playing at the highest level. It's to win. Yes, those
Speaker 2: things are great, but it is to win a World Series.
Speaker 2: And uh, to be able to get in that position
Speaker 2: and and put yourself in that position is is so
Speaker 2: it's so fleeting. Uh. And then to have it come
Speaker 2: and go, it's almost like a wedding night. You know,
Speaker 2: it's just like wow that that happened so fast. Uh.
Speaker 2: And then you know, regrewing again for the off season,
Speaker 2: getting ready to do it, uh for the next year,
Speaker 2: it seems like, you know, it's like, okay, we have
Speaker 2: we know we're going to do really well during the season.
Speaker 2: We just got to stay healthy, get through the season.
Speaker 2: And then once we get to the playoffs, we're gonna
Speaker 2: make a push to win a World series again. But
Speaker 2: it's really it's funny because you think about it as uh,
Speaker 2: you know, this this this uh marathon that you just
Speaker 2: ran and then and then you know again you have
Speaker 2: to you have to start again and and and uh.
Speaker 2: That's that's part of the the joy of the journey
Speaker 2: though too, you know, going through it. There's not a
Speaker 2: lot of uh glamour or or anything like that that
Speaker 2: goes along with with playing at the highest level because
Speaker 2: it's it's really the grind and learning how to get
Speaker 2: through uh difficult moments and and continue to persevere and
Speaker 2: battle through uh swordness or injury or or you know,
Speaker 2: just terrible outcomes or poor performances mentally physically. Uh you
Speaker 2: continue to just gain uh you know, reference points from
Speaker 2: the season before. So that's that's really for me, you know,
Speaker 2: moving forward as as a player and hopefully as a
Speaker 2: uh you know, somebody who could help other players in
Speaker 2: the future, uh you know, see that ten thousand foot
Speaker 2: view and and understand the perspective that they'll have for
Speaker 2: for an entire career instead of just being you know,
Speaker 2: caught up in uh an outcome, and and that's something
Speaker 2: that you know, those years certainly gave me a different
Speaker 2: perspective than uh and fortunate to have it because there's
Speaker 2: a there's a number of players that get to play
Speaker 2: this game and they never get an opportunity to play
Speaker 2: in a World series, let alone the playoffs. So you
Speaker 2: know that's something you know that that I'm definitely grateful for.
Speaker 1: And Rich Hill wants to start the journey again even
Speaker 1: after twenty seasons. Rich Hill, who was a fantastic for
Speaker 1: Mike's Team USA team this past offseason in Tokyo, Japan,
Speaker 1: is not ready to call it a career. There's a
Speaker 1: lot left in that Boston gas tank of his. So
Speaker 1: you are not retired. You're just winning for that opportunity,
Speaker 1: right Rich Yeah.
Speaker 2: You know it was great experience. We went to Mexico
Speaker 2: with Team USA, we qualified to go to Japan and
Speaker 2: we ended up winning the bronze medal in Japan in
Speaker 2: the Premiere twelve tournament this past offseason. And you know,
Speaker 2: with Dino Ebol, Mike Soshia, you know, we had a
Speaker 2: great coaching staff there with with with all the players,
Speaker 2: you know, a lot younger than I am, obviously, David.
Speaker 2: I think that the on average, I think everybody was
Speaker 2: twenty two on that team. But I enjoyed it so
Speaker 2: much and I threw the ball great, came out of
Speaker 2: my hand the way that I wanted to, you know,
Speaker 2: last season, I got to do what I wanted to
Speaker 2: do as far as you know, kind of planning out
Speaker 2: the entire summer, having an opportunity to come back and
Speaker 2: pitch out of the bullpen with the Red Sox, which
Speaker 2: was something that I hadn't done in I don't know,
Speaker 2: ten or twelve years. So that was certainly an interesting challenge,
Speaker 2: but gratifying in the fact that I was able to
Speaker 2: you know, see it through and to get the opportunity
Speaker 2: to start again. Really it was just something that reignited
Speaker 2: the love for going out there and competing and knowing
Speaker 2: that I can contribute to a team and not just contribute,
Speaker 2: you know, in a small way, but I think it
Speaker 2: could be a major contribution, you know, for this twenty
Speaker 2: twenty five season. So with that, we'll we'll wait to
Speaker 2: see where kind of all the chips fall after spring
Speaker 2: training and as we know, an unfortunate part of the
Speaker 2: game as injuries, and we're already seeing some of those
Speaker 2: you know, happening throughout baseball, and I know that there
Speaker 2: will be needs for teams to you know, looking for
Speaker 2: starting pitching. So you know, I'm on my end. I'm
Speaker 2: just staying ready and throwing and working out and and
Speaker 2: you know, seeing where that that fit might be.
Speaker 1: And somebody definitely could use and certainly gain some traction
Speaker 1: by signing rich Hill, who is still has has a
Speaker 1: lot left in the tank, far from over, as the
Speaker 1: great Frank Stallone would say, Richie.
Speaker 2: Yeah, I mean, I you know, I'll be forty five
Speaker 2: here in a couple of days, and I think that's
Speaker 2: kind of, you know, one of the things for teams.
Speaker 2: They I totally get it. It's uh, you know, a
Speaker 2: risk management type of probably outlook for them. How many
Speaker 2: forty five year old pitchers are still looking to play?
Speaker 2: I don't think there are any.
Speaker 1: So no, you know, by the way, did you just
Speaker 1: did you just promote your birthday which is on March eleventh?
Speaker 1: Were you promoting in Los Angeles that the fact your
Speaker 1: birthday is coming up? Was that Was that a humble brag?
Speaker 2: Yeah? I guess so. I you know, I'm I hate
Speaker 2: surprise parties. I'm not a birthday party guy, But grudgingly,
Speaker 2: I don't you know, I'm like, whatever, it's my birthday,
Speaker 2: leave me alone.
Speaker 1: I heard you're waiting to sign with the team until
Speaker 1: after your wife and kids and family throw your birthday
Speaker 1: party on March eleventh. After that, if you're willing to
Speaker 1: sign with the.
Speaker 2: Team, well, I felt I felt so good in in
Speaker 2: in Japan, pitch really well, pitch well in Mexico, you know.
Speaker 2: And had I not, you know, I think that realistically,
Speaker 2: seeing obviously the writing on the wall, I would have
Speaker 2: made a sound decision to to move on. But you know,
Speaker 2: that wasn't necessarily the fact. So uh, That's That's where
Speaker 2: I'm at right now, and I feel great and again, uh,
Speaker 2: you know I I I think that experience, uh, coupled
Speaker 2: with you know, the understanding of how to pitch in
Speaker 2: that realm of pitching, not just throwing, there will be
Speaker 2: a need out there for clubs.
Speaker 1: Heck yeah, there will be. Rich Hill is our guest
Speaker 1: America's pitcher and basically the anchor, right next to Christopher Columbus,
Speaker 1: right next to you know, Larry Bird and Robert Parrish
Speaker 1: and Kevin McHale. Rich Hill, Bobby the King of Boston
Speaker 1: and your little brother, Walker Buehler has signed with the
Speaker 1: Red Sox. If you're still not signed with the team
Speaker 1: and you're still living in Boston and celebrating your birthday
Speaker 1: which is coming up, as you promoted on March eleventh,
Speaker 1: how much of a connection do you still have with Walker?
Speaker 1: How much do you believe that he'll tap into you?
Speaker 1: Are you trying to gouch him on ren in Boston somewhere?
Speaker 1: What is the dynamics between you and Buehler now that
Speaker 1: he's in Boston.
Speaker 2: Now, I've talked with Walker and you know, congratulated him
Speaker 2: obviously on signing with Boston. And then I love the
Speaker 2: uh the number choice of zero. I think that's uh,
Speaker 2: that's that's really uh, you know, perfect for Boston. And uh,
Speaker 2: he's going to do great here. People are gonna love him,
Speaker 2: I mean, just as they did in La because of
Speaker 2: his just the way he goes out there and you know,
Speaker 2: does his thing and and leaves it all out on
Speaker 2: the field, and everybody appreciates that. That's what they appreciate
Speaker 2: anywhere when you're buying the ticket to go watch the show, right, Yeah,
Speaker 2: and uh, he certainly brings that emotion. That's tied with
Speaker 2: the ticket. That's the reason why we go to live events.
Speaker 2: We want to see a performance that you know, you
Speaker 2: go see a live theater and and and and it's
Speaker 2: it's very visceral. It's right there in your face. So
Speaker 2: he's going to bring it here in Boston, and Boston's
Speaker 2: fortunate enough to to have him. So I think it's
Speaker 2: going to be a great fit.
Speaker 1: I haven't asked you this before. What he did in
Speaker 1: Game five of the World Series is legendary, as legendary
Speaker 1: as Freddie Freeman's walk off Grand Slam in Game one.
Speaker 1: What did you think about the young kid that was
Speaker 1: lockered next to you in twenty seventeen growing into that
Speaker 1: picture that could do something that he was never comfortable
Speaker 1: with and do it on the biggest stage.
Speaker 2: Yeah, I think that's you know, the experience that has
Speaker 2: led right to that moment. So when you get the
Speaker 2: experience and the seasoning coupled with the moment and the
Speaker 2: opportunity when you're ready to seize that moment, that is
Speaker 2: exactly what everybody got to see. And that was you know,
Speaker 2: that was just the timing and again the struggles, the
Speaker 2: you know, ups and downs that he's gone through with
Speaker 2: you know, being injured coming back, but again, all the
Speaker 2: time and the effort, like I've said before, the days,
Speaker 2: the weeks, the months, the years that he's put in
Speaker 2: all showed in that one moment because it all came together,
Speaker 2: you know, with with the experience, the ability to be
Speaker 2: able to control the situation at the highest level in
Speaker 2: the biggest moment, all came together for Walker and it
Speaker 2: was it was beautiful to see.
Speaker 1: That's awesome, Rich And like I said, a team certainly
Speaker 1: could use your experience and what you showed for Team
Speaker 1: USA this past offseason. But if it's a little delayed,
Speaker 1: I would love to see you at Fenway Park when
Speaker 1: Walker Buehler makes his first start with the Red Sox.
Speaker 1: That would be special.
Speaker 2: Yeah, that would be really cool. Yeah. I got to
Speaker 2: find out when that's gonna be. And uh, it'll be
Speaker 2: the first time I think I've sat in the stands
Speaker 2: to watch a watch a game. Maybe maybe I can
Speaker 2: get up in the booth and do an inning fall
Speaker 2: an inning.
Speaker 1: I mean, you did that in spring training last year.
Speaker 1: Are you doing it again this year?
Speaker 2: We'll see. I'm not one hundred percent sure I know
Speaker 2: whether it's Uh. With with radio or TV. We'll we'll
Speaker 2: figure it out. I you know, I haven't put the
Speaker 2: glove down obviously, so that's that's kind of the big big.
Speaker 1: I guess all right, we've made that clear. I have
Speaker 1: no Rich Hill is not retired, but you may see
Speaker 1: him at Fenway Park when Number zero makes his Boston debut. Rich,
Speaker 1: we could have you on the whole hour and one
Speaker 1: night we will do that where fans can call in
Speaker 1: and talk to you and just show you how much
Speaker 1: you mean to them to this day. But you don't
Speaker 1: have to go home, but you can't stay here anymore.
Speaker 2: Well, I love La Dave, which obviously that was you know,
Speaker 2: great years, great memory and and uh great memories throughout
Speaker 2: those those years there in l A and and certainly
Speaker 2: we do miss it. We we we love we loved
Speaker 2: you know, like I said, the time there and and
Speaker 2: and just the support that everybody gave us so is uh,
Speaker 2: it's it's uh, you know, special place.
Speaker 1: Well, you're always welcome back, Rich and uh we'll see
Speaker 1: what happens and what trans inspires in Major League Baseball
Speaker 1: and where the long journey leads you this year. Thank
Speaker 1: you for the time, and we'll talk soon
Speaker 2: All right, Dave, thank you for having me on