Not since 2004 has a season of Major League Baseball passed without Rich Hill throwing at least one pitch.

Hill, who turns 45 in March, is hoping to extend that streak into 2025.

“I’d love to play another year and have an opportunity to get into the postseason and win a World Series,” Hill told Bob Nightengale’s USA Today. “That’s everybody’s dream. I’ve been close a couple of times, but it’s not like anything I’ve experienced in the game.

“Playing in the postseason, there’s nothing like it. Nothing at all like it.”

Hill is 90-74 with a 4.01 ERA in a career spanning the last 20 seasons. He sat out the beginning of the 2024 season to coach his son’s Little League team in Massachusetts, then signed a minor league contract with Boston in August. The Red Sox released Hill in September after he appeared in four games out of their bullpen.

More recently, Hill has pitched for Team USA in the Premier12 tournament. He is scheduled to start their final Group A game Thursday night against Mexico.

The Team USA hat is a new one for Hill, who’s pitched for 13 of the 30 MLB teams in his career since being drafted by the Chicago Cubs out of the University of Michigan in 2001. Hill debuted with the Cubs four years later and has also pitched for the Baltimore Orioles, Chicago White Sox, Los Angeles Dodgers, Oakland Athletics, Boston Red Sox, Minnesota Twins, Tampa Bay Rays, New York Mets, Pittsburgh Pirates, Cleveland Guardians, Los Angeles Angels, San Diego Padres, and New York Yankees.

According to Nightengale, Hill turned down three major-league contract offers during the winter and spring of 2023-24.

The Red Sox would likely be seen as the favorites to sign Hill since they are the closest team to his home and have employed him on four non-consecutive occasions already. Their Chief Baseball Officer, Craig Breslow, is one of eight men in his position younger than Hill, according to Nightengale. He and Hill were teammates in Boston in 2012.

Hill told Nightengale he was texting former teammates throughout the Dodgers’ World Series run in October.

“It’s really cool to see just the joy on their faces,” he said. “Seeing other players experience that, you’re just genuinely excited for them. And you want that. One more time. So hopefully, that will come around. I still feel that I have a lot to offer. I think baseball is at a crossroads where were need to start developing starting pitching again, and not just relievers who are chasing velocity at a young age. I know I can still provide innings.

“But, if not, and that’s it, I can call it on my own terms, knowing I’ve been fortunate to have a lot of really cool experiences in this game.”