Boston GM search continues: Mike Hill '93 mentioned

Peter Woodfork and the rest of the internal candidates for the Red Sox job haven't been mentioned much lately, but there is this new potentially interesting wrinkle from Saturday's Globe:

Michael Hill, the Florida Marlins' assistant GM the last three seasons, also is expected to be interviewed in the coming days. Hill, named to Black Enterprise magazine's 2003 Hot List of African-American executives under age 40, is a celebrated 1993 graduate of Harvard, where as a senior he was elected class marshal, led the football team in rushing, and captained the baseball team.

Hill, in an e-mail last night, said he had not yet been contacted by the Red Sox.

Flashback: Hill's Triple Threat: Run, Hit and Lead:

Hill's dignified leadership draws praise from his coach and teammates as well as votes from his classmates-Hill is also a Senior Class Marshal.

"Mike is as fine a captain as we'll ever have," Harvard Coach Leigh Hogan says. "He's an outstanding player and an outstanding person."

Fellow outfielder senior Juan Zarate agrees:

"He is a quintessential leader. On the field he does his job extremely well. Off the field, he's a person you can approach with any kind of problem. He just does things right and makes people feel good about being on the team."

Hill's low-key leadership manifests itself in the values he impresses on his team; teamwork, unity and shared sacrifice.

"This is my last year playing, and I really want the team to do well," Hill says. "This year we don't have the same personnel we had in the past, and we just have to bring everything we have together and focus on winning. We're trying to promote team unity. If we don't get contributions from all nine players, we won't have an Ivy League title."

"Mike is talented, classy, and a very hard worker," junior first baseman Dave Morgan says. "He's real interested in making us a team and is doing a good job so far as Captain."

Harvard is at a cross-roads-lacking the bats of Jim Mrowka '92, Dan Scanlan '92 and Nick DelVecchio '92 as well as the strong arms of Tom Hurley '92 and Scan Johnston '92-the team must find a new persona, a new way to manufacture runs and win games.

Hill is the team's triple threat; he can run, field, and hit. The second leading rusher on the football team this year (averaging 4.2 yards per carry), Hill has stolen 28 bases in three seasons for the Crimson. A good glove in right field, the stalwart holds a remarkable .963 fielding percentage over the last two years-and he was errorless in league play last year.

Flashback: The Harvard Independent, 2004

I: Fair assessment. Now a few things about your Harvard background. Did you ever feel as though there was a stigma in baseball attached to being an Ivy Leaguer?

MH: I've never really thought about that. I know what kind of person I am, I know my abilities. The fact that I went to Harvard, I would hope that nobody would ever stereotype me or label me as anything. My experiences are different from other Ivy Leaguers within baseball. There are Ivy Leaguers who are GM's, who never played the game beyond high school or junior high. I'm proud of the fact that I played in the minor leagues, I rode on the buses, and from that standpoint, I feel like I have a perspective in dealing with players that some other people may not have.

Bonus Flashback: The Crimson, 5/2005:

Hill, meanwhile, worked his way into baseball operations after playing for three years in the minor leagues. He now stands just a step away from joining DePodesta as Harvard alums as general managers.

“The toughest part is getting the opportunity,” says Hill of his experiences in baseball. “Then you have to make the most of it.”