Today in White Sox History: January 16

On this day 59 years ago, Jack McDowell began his crawl to White Sox ace. | Mitchell Layton/Getty Images

Happy birthday, Black Jack!

1966

Future White Sox ace Jack McDowell was born in Van Nuys, Calif. A former Team USA and Stanford University standout, the White Sox made “Black Jack” the No. 5 overall pick in the 1987 draft, incidentally kicking off a four-year run that also netted Robin Ventura, Frank Thomas and Alex Fernandez. McDowell was a three-time All-Star from 1991...