A New York native from Westchester County, Gill Hill didn’t turn 18 until two months after the Rays selected him in the sixth round of the 2022 Draft. Tampa Bay went above slot to sign the right-hander for $597,500 with the knowledge that he’d be a long-term project, and his first full season in the Florida Complex League and with Single-A Charleston (5.49 ERA, 39 strikeouts in 41 innings) was a clear indication of that. Gill Hill’s breakout has arrived in a big way this summer back in the Carolina League with stellar results over more than double the workload.
The 6-foot-2 hurler works with a pair of fastballs in the 92-96 mph range -- a four-seamer that comes out flat at the top of the zone from his three-quarters delivery and a sinker with solid armside run. The latter helps drive a groundball rate that has been north of 50 percent for much of 2024, and his combination of whiffs and weak contact has led to the impressive results in Single-A. He’ll show a pair of breaking balls in his curveball and slider. The slider might be the better of the two moving forward with his current arm slot, though Tampa Bay coaches have been pleased with the deuce too. He also mixes in a mid-80s changeup with promising fade, leading to good lefty splits, and a sharper cutter that acts as a go-between for his heater and breaking stuff.
Gill Hill has worked on maintaining his arm slot in his second full season, leading to more promising results especially when it comes to control. He may lack a true plus pitch at this stage, but the diversity of his mix and his upward trajectory make him the next big prospect arm headed toward St. Petersburg.
