James Phillip Howell (born April 25, 1983, in Modesto, California) is a Major League Baseball left-handed pitcher. He is an alumnus of Jesuit High School in Carmichael, California and the University of Texas at Austin, where he lead the Longhorns to an appearance in the 2004 College World Series championship series . Howell had the best ERA in the World Series Tournament, achieving an impressive 0.77 ERA.