Alan J. Hill seemed destined for the major leagues.
Nicknamed “Mooney,” he had a mediocre first season as a 20-year-old with the Richmond Colts in the Virginia League (Thirty-five year-old teammate Chief Bender went 29-2 with a 1.06 ERA for the Colts that season). Hill followed that up with three excellent seasons with the Toledo Mud Hens in the American Association.
As a reserve outfielder in 1920 he hit .366. In 1921, playing in the same outfield as Jim Thorpe, Hill hit .318 in 137 games, and hit .296 in 152 games in 1922 for a terrible Mud Hens team that went 65-101.
Hill moved to the Columbus Senators in 1923 and was the starting centerfielder. A month into the season he was struggling, hitting .204 through 23 games when he suffered a nervous breakdown.
Nothing is known about the cause of his illness or what his prognosis might have been. Hill was committed to the Woodville State Hospital in Collier Township, Pennsylvania.
On February 25, 1924 Hill wandered away while working on the grounds with other residents. The next morning his body was found on the train tracks of the Pennsylvania Railroad. He was 25.
Hill was most likely buried among the nearly 700 graves marked only with numbers on the grounds of the hospital, which was closed in 1992.
Update: As noted in the comments, a relative of Alan Hill informed me that he is buried at McKeesport and Versailles Cemetery in McKeesport, Pennsylvania.
Baseball History Daily 