First name is pronounced: GAIR-it... Is a 2008 graduate of Orange (CA) Lutheran High School, where he was a three-year varsity letterwinner...Was rated as the top high school prospect by Perfect Game Crosschecker and as the fourth-best high school player in the nation by Baseball America following his senior season...went 8-2 with a 0.46 ERA and 121 strikeouts in 75.2 innings as a senior; did not allow more than four hits in any of his 13 appearances (12 starts)...also hit .310 with seven home runs and 25 RBI with Orange Lutheran during his final season...drafted by the Yankees with the 28th overall selection in the first round of the 2008 draft, but did not sign... Opted to attend UCLA, where he went 21-20 with a 3.38 ERA, five complete games, 376 strikeouts and 322.1 innings pitched during his three-year career as a Bruin...left UCLA ranked second in career strikeouts, third in games started (49) and fifth in innings pitched...drafted first overall by the Pirates in 2011...signed by Pirates scout Rick Allen... Became a brother-in-law to Giants shortstop Brandon Crawford by marrying Brandon's sister Amy...has held Brandon to a .222 (4x18) average in their many matchups. • Acquired by Houston in exchange for four players on Jan. 13, 2017...is signed to a oneyear contract for the 2018 season...has one more year of arbitration before becoming a free agent following the 2019 season.
2017
Set a career high in starts and shared the NL lead in that department...ranked third among National League pitchers in innings pitched; was one of seven pitchers with 200 or more innings pitched...also ranked 10th in strikeouts and seventh in fewest walks/per 9IP (2.44)...his strikeout total was the second-highest of his career and the fourth-highest total by a right-handed pitcher in team history...tied for second in the league in home runs allowed (31), one shy of the club record (32 by Murry Dickson in 1951)...went 9-7 with a 4.21 ERA in 18 starts on the road and 3-5 with a 4.31 ERA in 15 starts at home...was Pittsburgh's Opening Day starter for the first time in his career and suffered a 5-3 loss at Boston on April 2 (5ER/5IP)...was charged with two earned runs or less in seven straight starts from April 14-May 17 (1.96 REA, 10ER/46IP)...pitched 7.0 innings in three straight games from May 6-17...had 10 strikeouts (fifth career game with 10 or more) on July 19 vs. MIL...went 3-0 with a 2.25 ERA (8ER/32IP) in five starts during the month of July...pitched 8.0 innings (102 pitches) while winning his seventh straight road start on Aug. 10 at DET; the last Pittsburgh pitcher to win seven straight starts on the road was Don Robinson, who did so in 1982...connected off Luis Castillo for his third career home run in a 1-0 victory on Aug. 26 at CIN; marked the first time in team history that a Pittsburgh pitcher accounted for all the team's runs with a home run in a shutout victory...won eight straight road decisions between June 2 and Aug. 26 (nine starts) - the first Pittsburgh starting pitcher to do so since Steve Blass in 1972...had a career-high 12 sacrifice bunts, which was tied for second among NL leaders.
2016
Made only 21 starts during an injury-plagued season...Made his first regular season start in fifth team game on 4/9 in Cincinnati and suffered a 5-1 loss (4.2ip/3er)...Pitched 6.0 scoreless innings while winning his first decision in third start on 4/21 at San Diego...Was victorious in first career start at Coors Field in Colorado on 4/26 (6.0ip/2er) ...Pitched 8.0 scoreless innings in a 2-1 victory over Jon Lester at Chicago on 5/15...Gave up one run in 7.0ip while winning a 2-1 decision vs. Colorado on 5/20; was also his first Major League game without a strikeout...Doubled and hit his second career home run in his start on 5/26 vs. Arizona - the first Pittsburgh pitcher with a double and homer in the same game since Danny Darwin on 5/29/96...Went 3-0 with a 1.04 ERA (26.0ip/3er) in a four-start stretch from 5/8-26...Opposed Jose Fernandez at Marlins Park on 5/31 and lost a 3-1 decision (6.1ip/3er)...Posted a 2.68 ERA (37.0ip/11er) in six starts during the month of May...Left his start on 6/10 vs. St. Louis in the third inning due to right arm discomfort...Was placed on the 15-day disabled list on 6/14 (retro to 6/11) with a strained right triceps muscle ...Threw off a mound for the first time on 6/26 (15 fastballs)...Threw 45 pitches in a simulated game on 7/1 at Oakland...Made a rehab start with Triple-A Indianapolis on 7/5 (3.0ip/2h/0r/0bb/6so - 45 pitches)...Made second rehab start on 7/10 at Columbus (5.0ip/2h/0r/0bb/6so - 70 pitches)...Was recalled from rehab and reinstated from the D.L. on 7/16...Suffered loss on 7/16 at Washington (4.0ip/5r/4er)...Threw 93 pitches while tossing his first career complete game in a 10-1 win vs. Seattle on 7/27; the first Pittsburgh pitcher to throw a complete game with fewer than 100 pitches since Francisco Liriano on 8/14/13 at St. Louis (94 pitches)...Won his final game on 8/2 at Atlanta...Gave up a career-high 12 hits in an 8-4 loss at Los Angeles (NL) on 8/13...Also gave up 12 hits in his next start; a no-decision vs. Miami on 8/19...Did not surrender a home run in 60.0 consecutive innings from the seventh inning on 5/20 thru the fifth inning on 8/19...Yielded 18 runs (17 earned) in 21.1ip over a four-start stretch from 8/7-24...Was placed on the 15-day D.L. on 8/29 (retro to 8/25) with posterior inflammation of his right elbow...Was reinstated from the D.L. on 9/12 and started that night at Philadelphia; allowed four walks and five runs in 2.0ip while suffering the loss...Lost each of his last four decisions...Was placed on the 60-day D.L. on 9/13 and missed the remainder of the season...Was reinstated from D.L. on 11/4.
2015
Was named to his first National League All Star team; pitched a scoreless third inning which included a strikeout of Mike Trout... Finished fourth in the BBWAA voting for the N.L. Cy Young Award...Did not commit an error in 47 total chances and was one of three finalists for the Rawlings Gold Glove Award for his position (Zack Greinke won)...Tied for second in the league in wins, ranked fifth in ERA, seventh in innings pitched and 10th in strikeouts...Joined A.J. Burnett (209 in 2013) as the only two righthanded pitchers in club history to strike out 200 or more batters in a season... His 19 wins were the most by a Pittsburgh pitcher since LHP John Smiley won 20 in 1991 and the most by a RHP since Doug Drabek won 22 in 1990... Set career highs in starts, wins, innings pitched and strikeouts in his first full season with the Pirates...Was named National League Pitcher-of-the-Month for the month of April after going 4-0 with a 1.76 ERA and 35 strikeouts in five starts...Became first Pittsburgh pitcher since Randy Tomlin (June 1992) to win the award...Was used as a pinch hitter for the second time in his career on 4/21 vs. Chicago (NL)...Was charged with three runs or fewer in each of his first 14 starts...Pitched a career-high 8.1 innings and struck out 10 batters in a 4-1 win vs. New York (NL) on 5/22...Became the first Pittsburgh pitcher since Emil Yde in 1924-25 to win 30 games in 53 Major League starts or fewer (Yde went 30-12 in his first 50 career starts)...Became MLB's first 10-game winner on 6/13 in team game #61; the last Pirates pitcher to earn his 10th win of the season on 6/13 or earlier was Bob Friend in 1956 (6/8) and the last Pittsburgh pitcher to earn his 10th win of the season in the team's 61st game (or earlier) was Vernon Law in 1960 (56th game)...Became just the second Pittsburgh pitcher to win 13 games prior to the All-Star break; also Dock Ellis (14-3 in 1971)...Became the first National League pitcher to win 13 or more games by the All-Star break since 2010, when Ubaldo Jimenez went 15-1 for Colorado and Adam Wainwright went 13-5 for St. Louis...Became just the third Pittsburgh pitcher to lead the Major Leagues in wins (13) at the AllStar break (since the first All-Star Game was played in 1933); also Roy Face in 1959 (12-0 and tied for the lead) and Rip Sewell in 1943 (12-2)...Had a 14-4 record and a 2.24 ERA after 20 starts, one of only three pitchers in Pirates history to have as many wins and as low an ERA over his first 20 starts of a season; the others were RHP Al Mamaux in 1915 (14-4, 1.78 ERA) and RHP Rip Sewell in 1943 (16-2, 2.22 ERA)...Pitched 7.0 scoreless innings while winning 16th game on 9/6 at St. Louis...Did not pitch again until 9/15...Went 3-0 with a 2.57 ERA (21.0ip/6er) in his last three starts and 4-0 in his last five outings... Went 4-1 in six September starts and has now gone 12-2 with a 2.95 ERA in 17 starts during the final month of season...Was the recipient of the Steve Blass Award, which is recognized by the local chapter of the BBWAA as the team's Most Outstanding Pitcher.
2015 POSTSEASON: Started the Wild Card Game against the Cubs on 10/7 and suffered a 4-0 loss to Jake Arrieta.
2014
Established career highs in every category while spending majority of season with Pittsburgh...Ranked second on staff in wins behind Edinson Volquez (13)...Was the winning pitcher in his season debut on 4/4 vs. St. Louis (7.0ip/2er)...Struck out 10 batters while also winning his second start on 4/10 at Chicago (NL)...Was in line for third win on 4/20 vs. Milwaukee before the Brewers tied the game in the ninth inning...Also had his second career two-hit game at the plate on 4/20...Gave up a total of two runs in back-to-back starts on 4/20 (8.0ip/1er) and 4/25 (7.0ip/1er), but went 0-1...Singled as a pinch hitter on 5/5 vs. San Francisco...Tied career high with 8.0 innings pitched while winning a 4-3 decision over Tim Lincecum and the Giants at PNC Park on 5/7...Pitched in front of about 30 friends and family members at Dodger Stadium on 5/29 and won his fifth game of the season (6.1ip/3er)...Gave up one run and struck out six batters in 5.2ip while winning his sixth game on 6/3 at San Diego...Was placed on the 15-day D.L. on 6/8 (retro to 6/4) with right arm fatigue...Threw a simulated game at PNC Park on 6/18 (65 pitches)...Threw a second sim game on 6/23 at Tampa (84 pitches)...Was reinstated from disabled list on 6/28 and suffered a 5-3 loss to the Mets that afternoon at PNC Park (4.0ip/5er)...Won his next start on 7/4 vs. Philadelphia (5.0ip/1h/0r), but left the game with right lat soreness... Was placed on the 15-day disabled list on 7/8 (retro to 7/5) with right lat soreness...Threw 72 pitches in a simulated game at PNC Park on 7/23...Made rehab start (81 pitches) with Triple-A Indianapolis on 7/28 and tossed 5.0 scoreless frames in a 5-0 win at Rochester (5h/3bb/7k)...Made second rehab start on 8/5 vs. Toledo and gave up 10 hits and five runs in 4.1ip...Pitched 6.0 scoreless frames and gave up just one hit while making third rehab start on 8/10 vs. Rochester...Made his fourth rehab start on 8/15 and tossed 7.0 scoreless frames (92 pitches); also went 1-for-4 with a double at the plate... Was recalled from rehab and reinstated from D.L. on 8/20; made start that night and received a no-decision vs. Atlanta (7.0ip/2er)...Struck out nine batters and left his next start on 8/26 vs. St. Louis with a 2-0 lead only to be a victim of a blown save...Was optioned to Class-A Bristol on 8/29...Was recalled on 9/1 and made the start that afternoon in St. Louis; took a 4-2 lead into the seventh inning before giving up a pinch-hit homer to Kolten Wong and eventually lost a 5-4 decision...Connected off Blake Parker for his first Major League home run while winning a 10-4 decision at Wrigley Field on 9/7...Won each of his last four decisions and went 4-1 in six starts during the month of September...Tied his career high with 12 strikeouts in his final start on 9/28 at Cincinnati...Went 8-for-44 (.182) at the plate with a home run and two RBI; singled as a pinch hitter on 5/5 vs. San Francisco...Went 5-1 with a 3.39 ERA (69.0ip/26er) in 11 starts at PNC Park.
2013
2013 SEASON: Entered season ranked by Baseball America as the Pirates top prospect and as having the "Best Fastball" and "Best Slider" in the system...Also ranked by MLB.com as No. 9 in their list of the Top 100 prospects in baseball...Began season with Triple-A Indianapolis...Did not allow a run in his final two Triple-A starts and 19.0 innings overall...Was selected by Pittsburgh on 6/11 and made his Major League debut that night against Tim Lincecum and the Giants at PNC Park...Gave up two runs in 6.1ip and was victorious in his debut; also had a two-run single in his first at bat, which was his first hit since high school...Became one of four starting pitchers since 1920 to earn a win and have at least two RBI in his Major League debut; also George Caster with the Athletics in 1934, Jim Turner with the Braves in 1937 and Jason Jennings with the Rockies in 2001...Also became just the third Pirates pitcher since 1900 to pitch at least six innings without allowing a walk in his big league debut, joining George Merritt, who did it on September 6, 1901 and Len Gilmore on October 1, 1944...Won his first four starts; the first Pittsburgh pitcher since Nick Maddox in 1907 to do so...Suffered first big league loss in fifth start on 7/4 vs. Philadelphia (5.1ip/3er)...Lost three straight decisions before winning again on 7/23 at Washington; gave up two hits and one run in 5-1 victory that night while also going 2-for-3 with an RBI at the plate to become the first Pirates rookie starter to have two or more hits while holding his opponent to two or fewer hits since Hank Gornicki had two hits in a two-hit shutout against the Boston Braves on August 27, 1942...Gave up three runs or fewer in each of his first eight career starts; the last Pirates pitcher to allow three runs or fewer in each of his first eight career starts was Whammy Douglas, who allowed no more than three runs in all eight of his starts in 1957...Received his first no-decision (5.0ip/4er) in his 11th start on 8/8 vs. Miami...Set a franchise record by pitching at least 5.0 innings and allowing no more than three earned runs in 10 consecutive starts to begin a career; the MLB record is 16 set by Gary Peters in 1963 with Boston and matched by Steve Rogers in 1973 with Montreal...Went 4-0 with a 1.69 ERA in five starts during the month of September and was named National League Rookie-of-the-Month...Went 6-4 with a 2.85 ERA in 12 starts after the All-Star break...Struck out career-high 12 batters on 9/19 vs. San Diego; the most by a Pittsburgh rookie since Jose DeLeon whiffed 13 on 8/20/83 vs. Cincinnati...Went 7-for-34 (.206) with five RBI at the plate (led Bucco pitchers in RBI)...Ranked sixth among N.L. rookies in ERA, sixth in wins, seventh in innings pitched and eighth in strikeouts...Was named to the Baseball America National League Rookie Team.
2013 POSTSEASON: Started Game Two of the N.L.D.S. vs. St. Louis on 10/4 and won a 7-1 decision (6.0ip/2h/1r) over Lance Lynn; also knocked in the game's first run with an RBI-single in the second inning...According to the Elias Sports Bureau, only two other rookies have been credited with a victory and a game-winning RBI in a postseason game: Spec Shea did it for the Yankees against the Dodgers in Game Five of the 1947 World Series and Paul (Daffy) Dean, brother of Dizzy, did it for the Cardinals against the Tigers in Game Six of the 1934 Series...Was the starter and loser against Adam Wainwright in Game Five at St. Louis on 10/9 (5.0ip/3h/2r).
2012
Began season ranked by Baseball America as Pittsburgh's No. 1 prospect and the 12th in all of minor league baseball...Also tabbed by the same publication as having the "Best Fastball" and "Best Slider" among Pirates farmhands...Went 9-7 with a 2.80 ERA in 26 combined starts at three different levels of the organization...Ranked second in strikeouts (136) and fourth in ERA in the Pirates minor league system...Attended spring training as a non-roster invitee and began professional career with Single-A Bradenton..Allowed one run on four hits in 4.0ip while striking out seven batters in a no-decision while making professional debut on 4/9 at Palm Beach...Allowed one hit over 6.0 scoreless innings and won his first game on 4/30 at Jupiter...Won each of his final five decisions with the Marauders, going 5-0 with a 1.80 ERA (50.0ip/10er) over nine starts from 4/30 to 6/14...Was named to the Florida State League mid-season All-Star team but did not participate in the contest after being promoted to Altoona on 6/20...Ranked third in the Florida State League in strikeouts per 9.0 innings pitched (9.27), fourth in batting average against (.217), fifth in ERA and sixth in strikeouts at the time of his promotion...Won his Double-A debut on 6/20 vs. New Britain after allowing two runs in 5.0 innings...Was hit in the face by a line drive in his 6/26 start at Harrisburg; stayed in the game and finished the inning but left due to his pitch count in the first inning...Pitched in the All-Star Futures Game in Kansas City on 7/8; allowed a two-run homer while also striking out a pair of batters in 1.0 inning of work...Was promoted to Indianapolis on 9/1 and won his Triple-A debut vs. Toledo after allowing three runs in 6.0 innings and striking out seven batters...Started and lost Game Two of Indianapolis' first round playoff matchup against Charlotte (2.0ip/9h/8r/8er).
2011
Finished three-year career at UCLA on 6/3 and was selected by the Pirates as the first overall pick in the First-Year Player Draft on 6/6...Allowed one run or less in seven of his 16 starts with UCLA and registered at least 10 strikeouts five times...Had a perfect game broken up with a two-out single in bottom of the 7th inning at Nebraska on 3/5 while pitching in 25-degree weather; ended up with a no-decision (9.0ip/2h/0r) in 1-0 UCLA win in 11 innings...Also had a perfect game broken up with a one-out double in the top of the 7th against Georgia on 3/11...Officially signed with Pittsburgh on 8/15...Made professional debut during the Arizona Fall League, where he went 2-0 with 3.00 ERA in five starts with Mesa (15.0ip/10h/6r/5er/4bb/16so)...Gave up three runs in 2.1ip while also reaching 100 mph on the radar gun in his debut on 10/14...Pitched 3.0 scoreless innings and whiffed three batters while winning his first game on 10/20 (fastball recorded at 100 mph six times and 101 once)...Was charged with just three earned runs in his last four starts (12.2ip - 2.13 ERA).
