Former White Sox player Michael Huff was living in Texas and working in the business world when he had a chat with Sox chairman Jerry Reinsdorf.

Reinsdorf wanted Huff to work with the Lisle-based Bulls/White Sox training Academy as its vice president of sports.

“When Jerry asks you to do something, it’s pretty easy to say yes,” Huff said. “So I’ve been doing this for about a year and I realized how much I missed sports and how much I missed Chicago.”

Huff, 47, lives in Hinsdale. He grew up playing baseball at New Trier High School and Northwestern University before embarking on a professional baseball career.

Huff played 369 career major league games from 1989-1996 with the Los Angeles Dodgers, Cleveland Indians, the White Sox and Toronto Blue Jays and hit .247 with nine homers and 75 RBI. He played with the Sox from 1991-93 and was a part of the ’93 team that made it to the American League playoffs. He hit .307 in 10 seasons in the minors.

Now he oversees baseball, softball and basketball at the Bulls/Sox Academy and makes many public appearances on behalf of the organization. He was in Orland Park recently and announced the Bulls/Sox Academy was joining forces with the Orland Hills Wolves Youth Baseball and Softball organization for camps and instruction.

“We’ll be doing more specific programs than we typically provide,” Huff said. “We’ll sit down and figure out if we will work on more pitching or base running or defense. Then we can provide some tailor-made programs for Orland Hills.”

The Wolves are looking forward to the partnership.

“It’s taking our league to another level,” league president Garry Rivera said. “We’ll be having minor league players and ex-Sox players working with our kids. It’s a good idea that hasn’t been tried much in our area.”

Huff doesn’t exactly have Hall of Fame numbers but he has some Hall of Fame memories, including a diving catch in the outfield to rob Hall of Famer Paul Moliter of a hit when he first joined the White Sox.

But some of Huff’s fondest memories came playing in the outfield for the Sox.

“Every game there was one person in the stands yelling ‘go New Trier’ or ‘go Northwestern,’ ” Huff said. “It was really a home town team for me.”

jvorva@tribune.com