Nick Hill Affected By Army Athlete Rule

By Tim Hayes
Sports Writer / Bristol Herald Courier
Published: July 25, 2008

Nick Hill’s Major League dreams have been delayed.

The U.S. Army has changed a policy that would have allowed West Point graduates to compete in professional sports. The revision will have a significant impact on Hill’s professional career.

The former Sullivan East High School and Army star is currently in his second season as a pitcher in the Seattle Mariners’ minor league system. The Associated Press reports he will report to an Army unit at season’s end.

He must serve two years of active duty before he can apply for a release.

Hill did not immediately return phone calls to the Bristol Herald Courier on Thursday afternoon.

In 2005, the Department of Defense unveiled the Alternative Service Option. The rule stated that a West Point athlete could pursue a pro career if drafted or signed following his senior season. Under that rule, the athlete would still have to fulfill military obligations at the academy during the offseason and once their careers ended.

In fact, Hill spent the months prior to the start of spring training taking part in officer training exercises in Georgia and Missouri.

The new policy reverses that rule.

“I don’t know that it was a complete surprise to him,” Carl Hill, Nick’s father, said by telephone from his Bluff City home. “I know that they were reviewing the program a month or two ago and details hadn’t been worked out and a decision hadn’t been made.
“He certainly wanted the opportunity to serve in a different way and that is how they made out the program. Now [his baseball career is] going to be put on hold, but there still may be an opportunity later on.”

There is a real chance that Hill could be deployed to Iraq or Afghanistan once the season ends, and it’s unclear if the months he spent in officer training during the offseason will count toward his required two years of service time.

He would be past his 25th birthday after his military obligation and an unlikely prospect.

Hill is one of five West Point grads currently playing in the minor leagues. Meanwhile, football star Caleb Campbell, of Perryton, Texas, was drafted by the Detroit Lions in March and had his National Football League aspirations dashed Wednesday when he was pulled out of the Lions’ training camp to take on his military obligations immediately.

A 2003 graduate of Sullivan East, Hill originally had planned to continue his baseball career at East Tennessee State University but then earned a West Point appointment.

He proceeded to set almost every pitching record in Army history and graduated with 33 career wins. He was drafted in the late rounds of the 2006 MLB Draft by the Boston Red Sox as a goodwill gesture, even though he couldn’t actually sign because he wasn’t yet past his senior year.

A year later, the Mariners made him a seventh-round pick and gave him a signing bonus in the $70,000 range.

He quickly made an impact at short-season Everett (Wash.) and went 1-3 with two saves and a 0.51 ERA. He entered the 2008 season as one of Seattle’s top pitching prospects.

He has struggled at times this season and is 1-7 with a 5.31 ERA in 30 games (10 starts) between High-Class A High Desert (Calif.) and Class AA West Tennessee.

Hill did discuss his military obligations earlier this month while pitching for West Tennessee. The Jackson-based Diamond Jaxx played a five-game Southern League series against the Tennessee Smokies in nearby Sevierville.

“It’s truly an honor to be able to represent the U.S. Army, and I’m very fortunate that they let me play right now,” Hill said July 8. “No matter what they ask me to do, I’m willing to do it. I knew when I went up there, I may end up serving overseas. They are giving me an opportunity to play, and I’m thankful for it every day.”

Hill’s father is not surprised by his son’s loyalty to the military.

“In any event, I think he is looking forward to serving his country in whatever capacity,” Carl Hill said. “He would have loved to continue playing baseball and maybe he will later on. It’s just going to be put on hold, at least for the immediate future.”

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