Red Sox top 10 most memorable moments of 2015

Mookie Betts makes home run-robbing catch to preserve Rich Hill‘s shutout
September 25, 2015

One of the most remarkable stories of the season was the resurgence of Rich Hill, who hadn’t started a game in the big leagues since 2009. He spent several years battling injuries and bouncing back and forth from the minors, including a three year stint (2010-2012) with the Red Sox in which he was limited to a total of 31.2 innings out of the bullpen. It seemed as if we had seen the last of Hill at the major league level, until a Red Sox team far from contention decided to give him another shot in the rotation.

The results were beyond anyone’s wildest dreams. Hill was 2-1 with a sparkling 1.55 ERA over 4 starts to end the season. He struck out 30 while walking only 5 in 23.0 innings, including three straight games with double-digit strikeouts.

The best performance of Hill’s abbreviated season came in a win at Fenway Park over the Baltimore Orioles, who he limited to a pair of hits in a complete game shutout. It was only his second career shutout, with the other coming way back in 2006 when he was a starter for the Chicago Cubs.

Hill was dominant in that outing, but he wouldn’t have completed the shutout if it weren’t for an outstanding play by Betts. With two outs in the top of the 9th inning, Baltimore’s

, who led the majors in home runs this season, stepped to the plate. Davis lined a shot to right field that seemed destined to clear the wall, only to be robbed by a leaping catch from Betts that sent him crashing head-first into the bullpen.

A complete game shutout is worthy of remembrance on it’s own, but the dramatic ending makes it all the more memorable.

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