Los Angeles Angels Veteran Kevin Pillar Records 1,000th Hit of MLB Career

Kevin Pillar came through in the clutch for the Los Angeles Angels on Sunday, delivering the game-winning runs against the Texas Rangers with a milestone hit.

May 19, 2024; Arlington, Texas, USA; Los Angeles Angels outfielder Kevin Pillar (12) celebrates in the dugout. / Kevin Jairaj-USA TODAY Sports

Kevin Pillar has been enjoying quite the resurgence with the Los Angeles Angels as of late, and his stint in Anaheim reached new heights on Sunday.

Pillar didn't start in the series finale against the Texas Rangers, but he did come in as a pinch-hitter in the top of the seventh. The Angels had just tied things up at 1-1, and it was up to Pillar to keep the rally going with one out and the bases loaded.

The 35-year-old outfielder made the most of the moment, singling to center. Two runners came around to score, and Los Angeles went up 3-1.

In addition to delivering what turned out to be the game-winning runs on that play, Pillar also achieved a major career milestone in the process.

The clutch single just so happened to mark the 1,000th hit of Pillar's MLB career.

Kevin Pillar has 16 RBIs in 12 games this season pic.twitter.com/N4UHPKM4nG

— swilly ☻ (@swillysports) May 19, 2024

"Very proud of this moment," Pillar wrote on X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter. "Thank you to all of great people have helped me to this milestone. Nothing makes me more happy than seeing how excited my kids are for me!"

Pillar also got the game ball back and shared a photo of it on social media.

#1000 hits in the MLB. Grateful, humbled, emotional and insanely proud of this accomplishment. pic.twitter.com/VcvSK30WbR

— Kevin Pillar (@KPILLAR4) May 19, 2024

Pillar made his big league debut with the Toronto Blue Jays back in 2013. He became the club's everyday center fielder in 2015, and he held onto that role until 2019.

In that span, Pillar averaged 149 hits a season.

Toronto traded Pillar to the San Francisco Giants early on in 2019, though, which began the run of him playing for nine teams in six years. From there, Pillar appeared in game for the Boston Red Sox, Colorado Rockies, New York Mets, Los Angeles Dodgers, Atlanta Braves and Chicago White Sox.

The White Sox had Pillar at the start of 2024, but they ultimately designated him for assignment and released him in late April. At the time, Pillar was batting .160 with a .650 OPS and 0.0 WAR.

Since arriving in Los Angeles, however, Pillar is batting .447 with a 1.238 OPS.

The veteran is a .259 hitter with a .707 OPS and 17.2 WAR in his 12-year MLB career.

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