An opportunity presented itself when Clayton Kershaw was saddled by shoulder trouble, but a knee strain ultimately prevented Rich Hill from taking the mound on Opening Day for the Los Angeles Dodgers this past season.
Though he managed to make his 2019 debut at the end of April, the left-hander was hampered by injuries for most of the year. Hill suffered a strained flexor tendon in a start against the Baltimore Orioles on June 19, which again sidelined him for the foreseeable future.
While he was informed that his UCL remained in good shape, he wouldn’t return to a Major League mound until the second week of September.