Aaron Hill's All-Star Comeback

Bill Eichenberger - SportingNews.com

NEW YORK -- At about this time a year ago, the Blue Jays told second baseman Aaron Hill to go home.

Hill had become so frustrated with the after-effects of a concussion he suffered in a collision with teammate David Eckstein on May 29 that the team thought some time away might help him to rest and recover.

"It was an interesting time," Hill said Monday, one day after learning he had been chosen by his peers to play in his first All-Star Game. "It definitely taught me to be patient."

That time away didn't have the desired effect, however. On August 15, the Jays announced that Hill wouldn't be back in 2008. And even he admits his return in '09 was anything but a sure thing.

"I always believed I would be back," said Hill, despite recurring bouts of dizziness and headaches. "But there is always that little bit of doubt in the back of your mind."

His teammates shared his concerns. "As it went on last year, you would have thought he would be back in a couple of weeks," John McDonald said. "But two months later, three months later, they were shutting him down for the season."

"There were times there where we really didn't know if he was going to be able to come back and play," Jays manager Cito Gaston said.

But those doubts disappeared in spring training.

"We had our fingers crossed," McDonald said. "He could tell you he was doing great as much as he wants, but we didn't really know until he got out there in the spring. ... We were all waiting to see how he would come through it. And he did great. It didn't slow him down one bit. He went after it."

And that encouraging start has carried over into the season. Hill is hitting .296 and ranks at or near the top among second baseman in hits (109), RBIs (59), total bases (182) and home runs (20), three more than his previous season high.

"I didn't get a chance to see him play last year because of his concussion," said Gaston, who replaced John Gibbons as Jays manager on June 19 last season. "But I think this kid is only going to get better. You haven't seen the best of him yet."

"He's swinging the bat as well as anybody in the league right now," Jays third baseman Scott Rolen said. "He's aggressive. ... He's playing offense when he gets that bat in his hand."

"He's always been able to hit," Jays shortstop Marco Scutaro said. "His swing is so compact, so short, and he's consistent with it every single day."

It is Hill's consistent and mature approach that most impresses McDonald.

"As a young player, he's very polished," McDonald said. "There's a very good thinking mind that goes along with the player. He's not just up there trying to hit the first-pitch fastball."

Now in his fifth season, Hill, 27, seems somewhat baffled by his fast start, saying he did not alter his offseason routine. "The only thing I could say is that I was more consistent in my work habits."

And he said he doesn't consider himself a home run hitter, even though he began Wednesday's play tied for fourth in the A.L. in that category. "Who would have thought I would hit as many as I have right now?" he asked. "I'm still going to work on hitting line drives gap to gap, and if they go out, that's even better."

If anything, McDonald said Hill has hit better than his startlingly good numbers would suggest.

"I don't know of many second basemen who have had 20 home runs before the All-Star break," McDonald said. "He's a line-drive hitter, and he's hit a ton of balls hard. And to have a .300 average with the amount of production that he's had, it has been very impressive to watch."

For his part, Hill, who hit .263 in 55 games in '08 after hitting .291 in each of the previous two seasons, said he is just grateful to be back in the major leagues.

"Everything worked out for me in the end. You just have to keep reminding yourself how easily it can be taken away."

Bill Eichenberger is a staff writer for Sporting News. E-mail him at beichenberger@sportingnews.com.

----

More baseball news

More sport news

Sports home

Copyright 2012 by SportingNews.com