Brice Hill can break Pirates clubhouse rules, and his dad doesn't mind

There is an unwritten rule in the Pittsburgh Pirates clubhouse that states, simply, don’t bother that day’s starting pitcher before the game.

It’s a matter of professional courtesy to give him time and space to think about how to attack the opponent’s hitters.

Brice Hill broke that rule Wednesday, but no one admonished him or questioned what was so important that the conversation couldn’t wait.

Most of all, Rich Hill, the starting pitcher for the Pirates in their 7-5 victory against the Cleveland Guardians, didn’t mind. Brice is Hill’s 11-year-old son.

Brice wasn’t born in a major-league clubhouse, but he looks at home in one after visiting them all. “I’ve hit all 30 ballparks recently,” he said.

Asked how long he’s been tagging along with his dad, Brice said, “Probably forever, almost.”

“Yeah,” said Rich, seated nearby in front of his locker. “Since you were born.”

“Since I was little, little,” Brice said.

Hill, the oldest player in the majors at 43 years, 4 months, has made it easy for his son to reach that milestone. He has played for 12 teams since 2005.

Brice doesn’t take his good fortune lightly.

“It’s awesome to be able to have the chance and opportunity to experience everything at such a young age,” he said. “Because not a lot of people have the opportunity. They’re not as gifted as I am, with my great dad, of course, and everything I get to experience in my short, little 11 years.”

Brice, who attends Dexter Southfield School in Brookline, Mass., will accompany the Pirates on their road trip that starts Friday and goes through Los Angeles and San Diego. Along the way, he hopes to meet the Angels’ Shohei Ohtani.

“I’m excited (for the trip),” he said.

Brice is a left-handed pitcher like his dad and also plays centerfield and first base.

He said his favorite players of all-time, other than Dad, are Ken Griffey Jr. and Ohtani.

“(Griffey, because of) how he plays, always just enjoying the game,” he said. “Shohei because he’s doing everything.”

Of the players he’s met, he’s partial to the Los Angeles Dodgers’ Mookie Betts, who he met when his dad was playing for the Boston Red Sox.

In the Pirates clubhouse Wednesday, he was greeted by Mitch Keller, who patted him on top of the head, and David Bednar, who offered a fist bump.

Not wanting to slight anyone, he said, “I like all the guys.”

After the game, Dad said he’s looking forward to spending time with Brice on the road trip. He said the time together helps him take a different approach to the rigors of baseball.

“It puts perspective as far as what he sees and sometimes what I see,” Hill said. “Obviously, the fun aspect of the game is definitely something that he reinforces for me. I definitely appreciate that very much.”

Added bonus: Brice can play a little, too.

“He is a good ball player. He loves it, too,” Hill said. “That’s really the main thing that matters. He has a passion for it. That right there is 90% of it, and being good at it is just an added kind of caveat.

“There are a lot of struggles in this game and in life, no doubt. But if you’re passionate about something, you’re going to continue to go all in on it. That’s something that’s exciting to see from my perspective.”