Chicago – Mark Buehrle's No. 56 will be retired in a ceremony Saturday at White Sox Park, where family, friends and Sox fans will celebrate a stellar career few envisioned when he joined the team in 2000.
He always will be remembered as the leader of the White Sox staff that won the 2005 World Series, and for his two no-hitters, including the perfect game against the Tampa Bay Rays in 2009 on the South Side.
But for those fortunate enough to have watched him develop from a late-round draft pick into one of the game's most dependable starters, the early years are what stick out the most.
It all began July 19, 2000, when Buehrle made his first major league start at 21, allowing two runs over seven innings in a 3-2 victory over the Twins in the Metrodome.
"It's good to get that first one out of the way," Buehrle said afterward. "Hopefully, there will be many more to come."
Buehrle wound up with 214 victories over his 16-year career, and threw 200 or more innings over 14 consecutive seasons with the Sox, Marlins and Blue Jays.
He was an unlikely ace, a 38th-rounder out of a community college in 1998 who received a $150,000 signing bonus.
Chicago Tribune
