Kyle Drabek
Kyle Jordan Drabek (born December 8, 1987) is an American former professional baseball pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Toronto Blue Jays, Chicago White Sox, and Arizona Diamondbacks. Drabek is the son of former major-league pitcher and 1990 National League Cy Young Award winner Doug Drabek. Kyle is one of only three sons of former Cy Young Award winners to reach the big leagues, the others being Vance Law (son of 1960 MLB winner Vern Law) and Cam Bedrosian (son of 1987 NL winner Steve Bedrosian). He wore a single-digit uniform number (4), a rarity among pitchers, while with the Blue Jays. High school Drabek attended The Woodlands High School. While there, he was an Aflac, USA Today, and Louisville Slugger high-school All-American at pitcher and shortstop. Drabek was paired on a Houston summer select team, Houston Heat, with Jay Bruce. While in high school, Drabek was named 2005 and 2006 Texas 5-A player of the year. During the 2006 spring season, the Highlanders won the Texas 5-A State Championship. During his high-school career, Drabek compiled a record of 30–1 on the mound while belting 27 home runs. In the 2006 Texas regional semifinal, he set The Woodlands High School record for most strikeouts in a game by a pitcher (19), recording a no-hitter. He first wore the number 4 as a wide receiver on The Woodlands varsity football team. He wore number 1 for baseball. Professional career Minor League Baseball In the 2006 Major League Baseball draft, Drabek was selected in the first round by the Philadelphia Phillies as the 18th overall pick. He had been ranked as the 12th-best prospect in the draft by Baseball America, but was drafted in a lower position because, at the time of the draft, there were concerns about personal incidents. Marti Wolever, director of scouting for the Phillies, stated of the issues that the Phillies "feel very good about this selection. We think everything is behind him and we're moving on." The Phillies opted to develop Drabek as a pitcher in their farm system. Drabek learned from the experiences of his father. He also described his father's involvement to be "like having a pitching coach who lives with you ... He taught me so much, not only about the physical part of the game, but the mental part too." He made four pitching appearances in the Gulf Coast League (for rookies) since his comeback from Tommy John surgery. He was then promoted to the A-Short Season Williamsport Crosscutters. After a dominant start to the season with the Class A–Advanced Clearwater Threshers, Drabek was promoted to the Class AA Reading Phillies on June 1, 2009. He was invited to the 2009 All-Star Futures Game, in which he pitched one inning. Drabek received the Paul Owens Award from the Phillies in a pregame ceremony at Citizens Bank Park on September 15, 2009. The annual award is presented to the top pitcher and the top position player in the Phillies' minor-league