Capital Hill, cont.; Cubs lefty has picked up where he left off in '06

He is "king of the hill" now, less than a year after the groundseemed to be crumbling beneath him.

Rich Hill takes the mound for the Cubs tonight against theMilwaukee Brewers as the major leagues' hottest pitcher, his 3-0record and minuscule 0.41 ERA in stark contrast to his team'swayward start. The lefty's mastery dates back even farther, going 6-3 with a 2.91 ERA over the final two months of last season.

Before that? An 0-4 record and 9.31 ERA in a three-week stintthat ended with a May 20 start against the White Sox, in which Hilllasted only four innings and drew stinging comments from Sox managerOzzie Guillen for coming to the defense of Cubs catcher …