Padres News: Rich Hill Debut Set Against Former Team

This should be fun.

The San Diego Padres were surprise buyers this trade deadline, adding five players to bolster their run to the postseason.

The team added Scott Barlow from the Royals, Garrett Cooper and Sean Reynolds from the Marlins and Ji-Man Choi and Rich Hill from the Pirates in a deadline that had many insiders questioning the direction of the team.

On the bright side, Barlow has already made an impressive Friars debut, and another debut is set for this weekend when Hill will be taking the mound on Sunday.

However, that game is going to be even more special for Hill, as he'll be taking on his former team on Sunday Night Baseball, the Los Angeles Dodgers.

Preller says it appears Rich Hill will make his #Padres debut Sunday vs. the Dodgers.

— Marty Caswell (@MartyCaswell) August 3, 2023

Hill was with the Dodgers from 2016-2019, and became a fan favorite over his four seasons there. However, he's now moved around to a few teams, and is about to pitch with his 13th team in the Padres.

When Hill takes the mound on Sunday, there will be tons of pressure on him. Not only is he playing against his former team, but he's getting his first opportunity to make a strong initial impression on his new organization.

This first game is not only against a divisional rival and the top team in the NL West, but it's on ESPN's Sunday Night Baseball in front of the entire country.

The pressure is going to be on Hill when he takes the bump on Sunday, so we'll see how he responds in his Friars debut.