Eric Hillman

Eric Hillman
Pitcher
Born: (1966-04-27) April 27, 1966
Gary, Indiana
Batted: Left Threw: Left
MLB debut
May 18, 1992, for the New York Mets
Last MLB appearance
May 30, 1994, for the New York Mets
MLB statistics
Win-Loss record 4-14
Earned run average 4.85
Strikeouts 96
Teams

John Eric Hillman (born April 27, 1966 in Gary, Indiana) is a former Major League Baseball and Nippon Professional Baseball pitcher. He pitched his entire 3-year MLB career with the New York Mets (1992–1994). After his MLB career, he pitched in NPB from 1995-1998 for the Chiba Lotte Marines and the Yomiuri Giants. Hillman was tied with fellow former pitcher Randy Johnson and current pitchers Andrew Sisco of the New York Yankees organization and Chris Young of the New York Mets, for the tallest player in the league, at 6 ft 10 in (2.1 m), before later being passed by 6 ft 11 in (2.1 m) Jon Rauch of the Toronto Blue Jays.[1] Hillman worked as an analyst for FSN Rocky Mountain's coverage of the Colorado Rockies between 2005-2008.

Nippon Professional Baseball career

He also played four seasons in Japan. He played first with the Chiba Lotte Marines where Bobby Valentine was manager. In 1995, his first season in Japan, Hillman had 12 wins and 9 losses. In 1996, he logged 14 wins and 9 losses and was voted the best nine. Hillman was also voted MVP of the 1996 All-Star game. In 1997, the Yomiuri Giants purchased his contract, signing him to a $7.5 million, two-year deal. The Giants expected him to be a key player in their quest for a championship.

Hillman, however, disappointed as he spent most of the time on the disabled list with shoulder pain. In 1997, he pitched only 6 innings. In 1998, he was still on the disabled list and continued to have severe pain in his throwing shoulder. On June 1, 1998 the Giants released him. After returning to the US, Hillman underwent arthroscopic surgery in July, 1998. Dr. James Andrews performed the surgery and discovered a full thickness tear in the rotator cuff, a diagnosis the Japanese doctors and trainers had missed. Hillman officially retired from baseball on April 19, 2000. He played high school ball at Homewood-Flossmoor in suburban Chicago.

References

  1. Svrluga, Barry (8 March 2007). "Rauch Reaches All-Time High". Washington Post. Retrieved 1 August 2016.

External links

This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the 8/1/2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.