The morning sun was barely up when a Royals veteran found himself brushing fresh paint across an old wooden fence. A day earlier, it had been the inside panel. Now, it was the outside’s turn. In between coats, there were trees to plant, rocks to throw on the beach, and workouts to take his son to. From the outside, it was an offseason morning. From the inside, it was something else — quiet preparation for one more shot.

You see, this was not just a star-filling time between games. It was Rich Hill, who had already weathered decades in MLB, who battled the inevitable whispers of retirement. However, his arm still had something to say.

When Rich Hill’s last team decided to cut ties, the choice in front of the veteran was simple: pack it in or pack a bag. Officially, Rich Hill had been “designated for assignment,” meaning there was no longer a place for the star on the 40-man roster. Most stars at Rich Hill’s stage of life and career would have accepted it as the final chapter. Not this one. Instead of reporting to Triple-A, Hill chose free agency, betting on himself to find a new team willing to provide him the ball.

This was not just related to hanging on. It was related to chasing something very few in MLB history have approached. Fourteen distinctive MLB teams have had Rich Hill’s name on a jersey — a mark the veteran shares with Edwin Jackson. Sign with one more team, and the former Royals star alone stands atop that list. That record could sound quirky to some; however, to the former Yankees star, it is a badge of endurance in a game that chews through stars far younger. “Keep playing,” Rich Hill said with a grin on the Baseball Isn’t Boring podcast. “We’re playing until the wheels… we got like three wheels left on the car. It’s an old car. It’s got some innings left in it,” he added. Such a mix of humor and grit is exactly why this story refuses to fade.

For the record, the data still show a pitcher who can compete. Two starts in July produced nine innings, a 5.00 ERA, and four strikeouts — hardly the stuff of elite headlines, however, exactly the type of steady veteran availability a contender could want down the stretch. After 21 big-league seasons, a career 90–76 record, and a 4.02 ERA, Rich Hill knows how to work with what is left in the tank. As Hill put it, whether it is throwing baseballs and skipping stones into the tide, the arm still works, and as long as it does, the door is not closed.

However, while one veteran pitcher is fighting to keep his career alive and chase a spot in MLB’s record books, another star in the Royals is battling a distinctive kind of fight — not for a deal, however, for the respect he has already earned on the field.

Royals’ two-time All-Star disrespected in current MLB closer rankings

When you have an ERA under 3.00, 30 saves to your name, and half of the team’s wins riding on your performance, you would think MLB would have no choice but to put you among the elite. Yet, that is not how the current closer rankings played out for the Royals, Carlos Estévez. Despite the All-Star credentials in 2023 and 2025, Bleacher Report slotted the star at No. 15 — a ranking that raised eyebrows among fans and analysts alike.

It is not just the placement that stings; it is who is ahead of him. Multiple stars ranked higher — Randy Rodriguez, Daniel Palencia, and Cade Smith — only stepped into the closer role midseason. Others, like Emilio Pagán, have had the job all season; however, they lack Estévez’s track record. Sure, six blown saves, which is the second-most in the league, is not pretty, but that number comes with context. As Estévez’s critics point out the blemishes, supporters note the quirks of modern baseball stats — like how the ghost runner in extra innings can make an otherwise strong outing look like a failure.

What is more, most of the star’s struggles were condensed into one brutal week in mid-July, when Carlos Estévez blew three straight saves. Outside of this stretch, Carlos Estévez has been nothing short of reliable, and without his work locking down the ninth inning, the team’s .500 record could easily have become something much worse. With the Royals still clinging to wild card hopes, he has a scope to write his own rebuttal to the rankings — one save at a time.

Such a move underscores just how delicate the balance between risk and reward can be at the MLB trade deadline. While some see it as a missed scope, others think of it as an analyzed bet on long-period stability. Either way, fans will be watching closely to see if this approach pays off.

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