Myers' ninth stop in majors a familiar one

Since breaking into major-league baseball in 1995 with the Florida Marlins, Mike Myers has played for eight teams.

On Monday, the 38-year-old relief pitcher's ninth stop was a familiar one.

"Good to be back,'' Myers said.

Born in Arlington Heights, Myers spent his first two years of high school at Hersey and the final two at Crystal Lake Central before heading to Iowa State.

A left-handed specialist, Myers pitched in 55 games with the New York Yankees this season, going 3-0 with a 2.66 ERA. He was designated for assignment Aug. 6.

While Myers had good numbers with the Yankees, left-handed hitters were batting .312 against him.

"It was streaky for me,'' said Myers, who now lives in Colorado. "I'd go through streaks where I'd give up 1 hit in a three-week span and then I'd give up 3 hits in a couple games.

"It sort of skewed things, but I never went through a long period of time where they had success getting on base against me. They weren't driving the ball hard, they were getting singles, but still I've got to get those guys out. I'm looking to turn it around here and getting back to what I was doing in the past.''

For his career, Myers is 24-24 with a 4.11 ERA, and he has limited left-handed hitters to a .218 average.

Myers had other options but signed with the White Sox after getting a $1.1 million club option for 2008. There is no buyout.

"That's the reason they put the option on the contract,'' Myers said. "So I come here and get the job done for six weeks, force them to pick the option up.

"(General manager) Kenny Williams left a message on my voice mail. He said, 'If we weren't thinking about next year, we wouldn't have signed you.' So obviously, they're working toward 2008, and hopefully I'm part of the future.''