J. P. Howell

American baseball player (born 1983)

James Phillip Howell (born April 25, 1983) is an American former professional baseball pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Kansas City Royals, Tampa Bay Devil Rays/Rays, Los Angeles Dodgers, and Toronto Blue Jays.

Howell attended Jesuit High School in Sacramento, California where he was a four year varsity letterwinner. In his senior season, he was 10–0 with a 0.09 ERA and 137 strikeouts, earning California Player of the Year, Sacramento Player of the Year and all city honors in 2001, as well as being named a first team All American by USA Today. He set a sectional playoff record with 47 strikeouts in 22 innings in 2000 as a junior and played in various international tournaments, including winning silver medals at the 2001 Junior Pan American Games, the 2000 International Baseball Association Foundation Games and the 1998 and 1999 AAU National Championships. Howell was drafted by the Atlanta Braves in the 2nd round of the 2001 MLB draft but chose to accept a scholarship to the University of Southern California, where coach Mike Gillespie said of him, "J. P. is a phenomenal freshman talent." He left the program and, after briefly considering transferring to Cal State Fullerton, instead chose to transfer to the University of Texas. Howell was 10–2 with a 2.52 ERA as a sophomore for the Longhorns and 15–2 with a 2.13 ERA as a junior. He led the Longhorns to an appearance in the 2004 College World Series championship series. Howell had the lowest ERA in the CWS that year at 0.77. He was selected as 1st team College All American and Big 12 Conference Pitcher of the Year.

Howell was drafted in the 1st round of the 2004 MLB draft by the Kansas City Royals. He made his professional debut with the Idaho Falls Chukars of the Pioneer League in 2004, appearing in six games (four as a starter) with a 3–1 record and 2.77 ERA. He began 2005 with the High Desert Mavericks of the California League and after eight starts was promoted to the Wichita Wranglers of the Texas League and then the Omaha Royals of the Pacific Coast League. Between the three levels he made 18 starts and was 8–2 with a 2.83 ERA and 100 strikeouts. Diamondbacks outfielder Luis Gonzalez said of Howell, "We didn't have much of anything on him going in. It was like walking down a dark alley." He made a total of 15 starts for the Royals in 2005 and was 3 5 with a 6.19 ERA.

On June 20, 2006 Howell was traded to the Tampa Bay Devil Rays for infielder Fernando Cortez and outfielder Joey Gathright. Howell was assigned to the Triple A Durham Bulls, where he made ten starts and was 5–3 with a 2.62 ERA. He started eight games for the Devil Rays and was 1–3 with a 5.10 ERA. In the majors, he started ten games and was 1–6 with a 7.59 ERA. He went 6 1 with a 2.22 ERA in 64 games, striking out 92 batters while earning three saves. Howell became the Rays closer in June 2009 after an injury to Troy Percival. He converted his first ten save opportunities and had a 1.64 ERA in 22 innings but after Ryan Langerhans of the Seattle Mariners hit a two run homer off him on August 7 he blew three straight save opportunities. "Terrible feeling" he told the press. He rebounded and finished the season with a 7–5 record and a 2.84 ERA in 69 games with 17 saves. He threw in a simulated game on May 17, but stopped after only twelve pitches, still experiencing discomfort in his shoulder. A few days later he underwent surgery on the shoulder to repair a torn labrum, causing him to miss the entire 2010 season. Howell was expected to miss the start of the following season as well and was non tendered by the Rays on December 10, 2010, to avoid arbitration. He was re signed on December 13 to a one year, $1.1 million, deal with the Rays. Howell rejoined the Rays roster on May 20, 2011, and pitched in 46 games in 2011, with a 6.16 ERA. and pitched in 55 games with a 3.04 ERA. He was a key part of the Dodgers bullpen, appearing in 67 games with a 4 1 record and 2.03 ERA. He had a 2.39 ERA in 68 appearances for the team in 2014. After the season, Howell exercised his $6.25 million player option for 2016. He was not as effective in 2016, as he had a 4.09 ERA in 64 appearances out of the bullpen.

On February 9, 2017, Howell signed a one year, $3 million contract with the Toronto Blue Jays. On August 16, Howell was designated for assignment. He was released on August 20.

On May 29, 2018, Howell signed with the San Rafael Pacifics of the Pacific Association.

Howell is a soft tosser. He throws his sinker in the mid 80's, topping out at 90 MPH. He also throws a knuckle curve that has been described by scouts as "heavy" because of its extremely sharp downward break, and some even classify it as a slider. He throws a change up that breaks away from right handed hitters. Howell has solid command of all three pitches. He was an excellent fielding pitcher in his major league career. In 619.2 innings pitched covering 547 games, Howell committed only one error in 146 total chances for a .993 fielding percentage. a former USC 800 meter runner and Fox Sports reporter The couple founded Discover Your Path Foundation to reach out to kids together. In 2011, Heather Hennessy Howell published a children's book, 'The Adventures of Dangles' with an anti bullying theme. In August 2016, his wife filed for divorce, citing irreconcilable differences, listing their date of separation as August 8.