Bill Hall (utility player)

For other uses, see Bill Hall.

Bill Hall
Bill Hall hits a home run on opening day April 2, 2007
Seattle Mariners
Third baseman
Bats: Right Throws: Right
debut
September 1, 2002, for the Milwaukee Brewers
Career statistics (through July 17, 2009)
Batting average	.253
Home runs	101
Runs batted in	362
Runs	368
Slugging percentage	.447
Stolen bases	49
Teams
Milwaukee Brewers (2002-2009) Seattle Mariners (2009-present

William "Bill" Hall (born December 28, 1979, in Nettleton, Mississippi) is a Major League Baseball third baseman for the Seattle Mariners.

Major league career

In the 2005 season, Hall helped the Brewers to their first .500 season since 1992. Splitting time among third base, shortstop, and second base, Hall had a batting average of .291 with 17 home runs and 62 RBIs.

The following season, Hall played behind newly acquired third baseman Corey Koskie, shortstop J. J. Hardy, and second baseman Rickie Weeks. On May 17, 2006, Hall became the Brewers' starting shortstop after Hardy injured his ankle.

On Mother's Day 2006, with the Brewers playing the New York Mets, Hall hit a walk-off home run in the 10th inning. He hit the home run using a special Mother's Day pink bat with his mother, Vergie Hall, in attendance. After the game he dedicated the home run to her. When the bat was later auctioned to raise money for breast cancer research, Brewers owner Mark Attanasio purchased the bat and gave it to Hall's mother. The final bid on the bat was over $25,000, the third-highest total ever paid for an auction item on mlb.com.[1]

In November 2006, Hall represented Major League Baseball in the Japan All-Star Series.

Hall became the Brewers' leader offensively with a .553 slugging percentage, 85 RBIs, and 35 home runs. He also led his team in runs scored (101), doubles (39), triples (4), total bases (297), and walks (63). As a result of his play, the Brewers named him the most valuable player of the team. On February 5, 2007, Hall signed a four-year deal for $24 million with the Brewers. There is also a $9.25 million option for a fifth season in 2011. [2]

Hall opened the 2007 season as a center fielder, batting fourth.[3] In 2007, he led all major league center fielders in errors with 9, and had the lowest fielding percentage among them, .971, as well as the lowest zone rating, .837.

On June 12, 2007, Hall drew three of the four walks issued by Justin Verlander in his no-hitter against the Brewers.

2008

Hall entered the 2008 season as the Brewers' starting third baseman, following the move of Ryan Braun to left field. In May, the Brewers called up left-hander Russell Branyan from triple-A to platoon at third base with Hall, after Hall struggled to get hits against right-handed pitchers for much of the early part of the season. Still in the lineup, Hall expressed his disappointment on June 3, 2008, by saying that if he was not going consistently to start for the Brewers, he might want to be traded in order to play every day (he had also grown tired of the Brewers changing his field position, which they had done three seasons in a row—usually something teams avoid so that players remain comfortable in their field positions and perform at their highest potential).

Following his statements, many Brewers fans booed him at Miller Park, which he later admitted affected his confidence. In June and early July he began hitting much better, even against right-handed pitchers (including game-winning, back-to-back, go-ahead home runs against right-handed pitchers of division rival St. Louis Cardinals, in the 10th inning of the first game of the series and in the 9th inning of the second), and all but pushed Branyan back out of the starting lineup. When asked what had changed he said that he felt that he had found his swing in early July, and had subsequently regained his confidence. He thanked his teammates for supporting him through it all.

Hall's hitting then worsened, as he hit .235 in August, and .182 in September–October.

Hall ended the 2008 season with a .225 batting average, and a .174 batting average against righthanders.

2009

On May 25 when the Brewers took on St. Louis in Milwaukee, Hall delivered the game-winning hit while matched up against a right-handed arm in Milwaukee. After the game, Hall declared "I wanna get back to when I was good." Hall subsequently recorded just two hits in his next 22 at bats.

On July 30, following a win against the Washington Nationals, Hall was sent down to the Triple-A Nashville Sounds. Despite not batting over .180 during May, June, or July, Hall has made some great strides with his swing while seeing batting practice action. "I'm going to go down and get some at-bats, hopefully get a bunch of hits and come back. My swing is good. I just need some reps. My batting practice the last few weeks has been some of the best of my career," Hall said. In his second game with the Sounds, Hall went 2-for-4 with a double and a home run while batting third. Hall was subsequently recalled from Triple-A Nashville and started in right field for the Brewers on August 3, replacing an injured Corey Hart. Hall went 0-for-3 with a bases-loaded walk.

On August 12, Hall was designated for assignment, ending his 7 year stint with the Brewers. On August 19, Hall was traded to the Seattle Mariners for minor league pitcher Ruben Flores.

Personal

Hall, along with teammates J. J. Hardy, Jeff Suppan, and Chris Capuano, appeared in an episode of CBS' soap opera The Young and the Restless.

External links

• Career statistics and player information from MLB, or ESPN, or Baseball Reference, or Fangraphs

{{subst:#if:Hall, Bill|}} [[Category:{{subst:#switch:{{subst:uc:1979}}

|| UNKNOWN | MISSING = Year of birth missing {{subst:#switch:{{subst:uc:}}||LIVING=(living people)}}
| #default = 1979 births

}}]] {{subst:#switch:{{subst:uc:}}

|| LIVING  = 
| MISSING  = 
| UNKNOWN  = 
| #default = 

}}