Portal:Chicago/Selected biography/135

Philip Gregory Humber is a Major League Baseball (MLB) pitcher for the Chicago White Sox. He has pitched for the New York Mets, Minnesota Twins, Kansas City Royals, and White Sox. Although he debuted in the major leagues in 2006 and worked mostly as a starter in the minor leagues, he did not become a regular Major League starter until 2011. He bats and throws right-handed. Humber earned three Texas Little League state championships. He subsequently played for the high school baseball team at Carthage High School in Carthage, Texas. Humber led his high school baseball team to the state championship game in his senior season as state Player of the Year. He then attended Rice University, where he played college baseball for the Rice Owls baseball team. Humber was the winning pitcher in the clinching game of the 2003 College World Series. He has also represented the United States at the World University Baseball Championship. The Mets selected Humber with the third overall selection in the 2004 Major League Baseball Draft out of Rice. He underwent Tommy John surgery while pitching in minor league baseball, before making his MLB debut with the Mets. It took him several years to regain his velocity after the surgery. After being traded to the Twins for Johan Santana, Humber struggled to establish himself. He spent a year with the Royals organization and was briefly a member of the Oakland Athletics organization, before being claimed on waivers by the White Sox in 2011, getting an opportunity to pitch in the White Sox' starting rotation. On April 21, 2012, Humber pitched the 21st perfect game in MLB history, defeating the Seattle Mariners.