Derek Hill (baseball)


Derek Jerome Hill is an American professional baseball center fielder in the Detroit Tigers organization. Hill was drafted by the Tigers in the first round of the 2014 Major League Baseball Draft.

Early life

Hill grew up in Des Moines, Iowa with his mother and spent his summers with his father in Northern California, where he played baseball for select teams. In 2011, he moved to Sacramento and attended Elk Grove High School in Elk Grove, California. He batted an even.500 in his senior season, with 11 doubles, seven triples 30 runs batted in and 29 stolen bases.

Professional career

Hill was drafted by the Detroit Tigers in the first round, 23rd overall, in the 2014 Major League Baseball Draft. On June 11, the Tigers announced they agreed to terms on a deal with Hill that includes a $2 million signing bonus. He was previously committed to play college baseball at the University of Oregon. Hill spent 2014 with both the GCL Tigers and the Connecticut Tigers, posting a combined.208 batting average with two home runs and 14 RBIs in 47 games between both teams. Hill's 2015 season, in which he batted.238 with a.619 OPS and 25 stolen bases while playing for the West Michigan Whitecaps, was limited to only 53 games due to injury. Hill returned to West Michigan in 2016 where he improved, posting a.266 average with one home run, 31 RBIs, and 35 stolen bases. In 2017, Hill began the season with West Michigan, and after batting.285 with an.812 OPS, he was promoted to the Lakeland Flying Tigers in late August. He played in only nine games for them in which he batted.194.
Hill was added to the Tigers 40–man roster following the 2019 season.

Personal life

Hill's father, Orsino Hill, is a scout for the Los Angeles Dodgers.