{{short description|American baseball player (born 1966)}} {{Use mdy dates|date=July 2024}} {{Infobox baseball biography |name=Eric Hillman |image=Eric Hillman (30851618876) (cropped).jpg |caption=Hillman with the Tidewater Tides in 1992 |position=Pitcher |bats=Left |throws=Left |birth_date={{Birth date and age|1966|4|27}} |birth_place=Gary, Indiana, U.S. |debutleague = MLB |debutdate=May 18 |debutyear=1992 |debutteam=New York Mets |finalleague = MLB |finaldate=May 30 |finalyear=1994 |finalteam=New York Mets |debut2league = NPB |debut2date=April 4 |debut2year=1995 |debut2team=Chiba Lotte Marines |final2league = NPB |final2date=May 14 |final2year=1997 |final2team=Yomiuri Giants |statleague = MLB |stat1label=Win–loss record |stat1value=4–14 |stat2label=Earned run average |stat2value=4.85 |stat3label=Strikeouts |stat3value=96 |stat2league = NPB |stat21label=Win–loss record |stat21value=26–19 |stat22label=Earned run average |stat22value=2.64 |stat23label=Strikeouts |stat23value=243 |teams= *New York Mets ({{mlby|1992}}–{{mlby|1994}}) *Chiba Lotte Marines ({{npby|1995}}–{{npby|1996}}) *Yomiuri Giants ({{npby|1997}}) }} '''John Eric Hillman''' (born April 27, 1966) is an American former Major League Baseball and Nippon Professional Baseball pitcher.
Hillman played high school ball at Homewood-Flossmoor in suburban Chicago, and then collegiately at Eastern Illinois University. He pitched his entire 3-year MLB career with the New York Mets (1992–1994). After his MLB career, he pitched in NPB from 1995 to 1998 for the Chiba Lotte Marines and the Yomiuri Giants. Hillman was tied with fellow pitcher Randy Johnson for the tallest player in league history at {{height|ft=6|in=10|precision=2}}, before later being passed by {{height|ft=6|in=11|precision=2}} Jon Rauch.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/03/07/AR2007030702385.html|title=Rauch Reaches All-Time High|first=Barry|last=Svrluga|date=8 March 2007|newspaper=The Washington Post|accessdate=1 August 2016}}</ref>
Hillman worked as an analyst for FSN Rocky Mountain's coverage of the Colorado Rockies between 2005 and 2008.
==Nippon Professional Baseball career== Hillman also played four seasons in Japan. He played first with the Chiba Lotte Marines where Bobby Valentine was manager. In 1995, his first season in Japan, Hillman had 12 wins and 9 losses. In 1996, he logged 14 wins and 9 losses and was voted the best nine. Hillman was also voted MVP of the 1996 All-Star game. In 1997, the Yomiuri Giants purchased his contract, signing him to a two-year deal. The Giants expected him to be a key player in their quest for a championship.
Hillman, however, disappointed as he spent most of the time on the disabled list with shoulder pain. In 1997, he pitched only 6 innings. In 1998, he was still on the disabled list and continued to have severe pain in his throwing shoulder. On June 1, 1998 the Giants released him. After returning to the US, Hillman underwent arthroscopic surgery in July, 1998. Dr. James Andrews performed the surgery and discovered a full thickness tear in the rotator cuff, a diagnosis the Japanese doctors and trainers had missed. Hillman officially retired from baseball on April 19, 2000.
==References== {{reflist}}
==External links== {{baseballstats|mlb=115955|espn=2687|br=h/hillmer01|fangraphs=1005830|brm=hillma001joh|retro=H/Phille001}}
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Hillman, Eric}} Category:1966 births Category:Living people Category:Major League Baseball pitchers Category:Baseball players from Indiana Category:New York Mets players Category:American expatriate baseball players in Japan Category:Chiba Lotte Marines players Category:Yomiuri Giants players Category:Eastern Illinois Panthers baseball players Category:Homewood-Flossmoor High School alumni Category:Columbia Mets players Category:Jackson Mets players Category:Little Falls Mets players Category:Norfolk Tides players Category:Round Rock Express players Category:St. Lucie Mets players Category:Tidewater Tides players Category:20th-century American sportsmen