Michael Hill Named 2015 First Pitch Speaker
CORAL GABLES, Fla. – Miami Marlins president of baseball operations Michael Hill will serve as the keynote speaker at the 2015 First Pitch Baseball Banquet, head coach Jim Morris announced Thursday.
“We’re honored to have Mike speak at our banquet,” Morris said. “He’s a great representative of college baseball and what it can do for you. He rose to his position very quickly at the age of just 43.”
A 1993 graduate of Harvard University, Hill was selected senior class marshal and doubled as the Crimson’s top rusher on the gridiron and baseball team captain. A 31st-round MLB Draft selection by the Texas Rangers, Hill played two seasons of professional baseball before joining the Tampa Bay Devil Rays’ front office in 1995.
Hill has served in multiple roles in the Marlins’ player development arm since joining the organization in 2002, rising through the ranks to general manager and eventually president of baseball operations. He spent five seasons in Tampa Bay and three seasons with the Colorado Rockies.
He was appointed to his current position with the Marlins in September 2013.
“He has a lot of pressure on him to build something special with the Marlins, and his first big signing was Giancarlo Stanton – I’d say that was a good one to start with,” Morris said.
The son of a Cuban mother and African-American father, Hill is married to his wife Vivian and has three sons: Donovan, Xavier and Baron.
“It’s a great start. It’s always fun to know we’re right there, and it’s time to open our season,” Morris said. “To have a guy Mike speak is even better – he represents our community not only as a Marlin, but as a Cuban-American and a college guy who has been successful.”
The First Pitch Banquet is slated for Feb. 5, 2015. Stay tuned to HurricaneSports.com for more information about the First Pitch Banquet and other baseball preseason festivities.
