His nickname is Gumby. ..Graduated from Sumter (SC) High School. Named Gatorade Player of the Year for South Carolina in 2011 after going 11-0 with an 0.38 ERA and 114 strikeouts over 74.1 innings pitched as a senior...Led Sumter to the 2011 South Carolina AAAA High School State Championship, throwing a shutout in the state championship game and did not allow a run in his four starts, all wins, in the state tournament...Played college baseball at the University of South Carolina posting career marks of 20-7 with a 2.87 ERA over 253.2 innings in 42 games started (44 app.). Was 5-0 with a 0.93 ERA in five career postseason starts for the Gamecocks...Threw 8.0 scoreless innings in his first College World Series appearance, defeating Arkansas (6/21/12) 2-0...In January 2018, spent two weeks with patients at Palmetto Children's Hospital in Columbia, S.C., promoting a virtual book drive on behalf of "Reach Out & Read", an organization which helps build home libraries for children at clinics located at various pediatric hospitals in South Carolina...Visited and played games with patients at the New York University Hassenfeld Children's Hospital in August 2018...Recently married this past January to his wife, McKenzie...Resides in Sumter, S.C.
2022
Games Started (32, T-5th), Shutouts (1, T-1st), Complete Games (1, T-5th), Pickoffs (3, T-5th), First Pitch Strike Pct. (65.4%, 9th), First Pitch Swing Pct. (36.5%, 4th). ..Following the trade with the Yankees, was 6-3 with a 3.11 ERA in 11 starts as a member of the Cardinals with the team posting an 8-3 record...Set single-season career highs in innings pitched (178.1), starts (32) and quality starts (14)...Began his Cards career with a five-game winning streak (Aug. 6-Sept. 2), longest by a starting pitcher to begin his career with the Cardinals since Miles Mikolas (6-0 in 2018)...Posted three of the Top 10 scoreless inning streaks for the Cardinals (14.2 IP, 4th, 8/17-27; 13.0 IP, T-6th, 8/6-17; 12.0 IP, T-10th, 9/2-7). ..Received two runs of support or less in 17-of-32 starts including six with zero...Led the Cardinals through the end of the season with 61 strikeouts following his acquisition at the trade deadline...Held left-handed batters to a .198/.213/.264 slash with just one HR (Rafael Devers on July 15), five extra-base hits, and just one walk to 109 LH batters faced...Since 1974, became only the 16th pitcher to face 100 or more batters in a season and allow one walk or fewer to a left-handed batter. First Cardinals pitcher to do so since Edward Mujica in 2013...His 1.76 ERA in August (30.2 IP) was his lowest in any month of his career with more than one start and the lowest by a Cardinals southpaw since John Tudor posted a 1.74 mark in 1985. Bill Sherdel holds the August left-hander franchise mark with a 1.00 ERA in 1918...Held the opposition scoreless in four of his 11 starts as a Cardinal. The first Cardinals southpaw since Jaime Garcia (4 in 2010) to win four games while allowing no runs. ..Became the 2nd MLB pitcher in the modern era to go 4-0 with no more than one run allowed over his first four starts with a team. Rookie Fernando Valenzuela is only MLB pitcher to yield one run over his first five starts (45.0 IP) with the 1981 Dodgers...Is one of three starting pitchers to have won each of their first four appearances to begin a Cardinals career, joining 1927 rookie Fred Frankhouse (5-0 in first five starts) and 1941 mid-season acquisition Harry Gumbert (4-0 in first four starts)...Logged season-best 13.1 scoreless innings over his first three starts with St. Louis, tying Alex Reyes (2016) and John Urrea (1977) for fifth-longest to begin a Cardinals career. Also was the longest by a starting pitcher in his first three starts since Kyle Lohse (15.0 IP) in 2008...Worked 6.0+ IP, allowing two runs or fewer, in a career high 12 starts, besting his previous high (8 in 2017)....Appeared in relief in Game 2 of the Wild Card Series vs. Philadelphia and threw 2.2 scoreless innings. It was his first relief appearance since Sept. 15, 2019 vs. Toronto with the Yankees.
2021
Went 6-7 with a 3.83 ERA (157.1IP, 150H, 73R/67ER, 51BB, 162K, 19HR) in a career-high 30 starts with the Yankees…also set career highs in innings pitched and strikeouts…opponents hit .250 (150-for-600, 19HR); LH .227 (30-for-132, 4HR); RH .256 (120-for-468, 15HR)…Made 30 starts after making just 17 starts over his previous three seasons...Allowed 3ER-or-fewer in 24 of his 30 starts, including 15 of his final 17 starts and 23 of his final 27 starts…his nine quality starts were one shy of his career high (10 quality starts in 2017)…Received 3R-or-fewer of support in 25 of his 30 starts and 2R-or-fewer of support in 17 starts…received one-or-zero runs of support in 12 starts (zero runs of support in seven starts)...In 13 home starts, went 3-4 with a 3.89 ERA (69.1IP, 30ER)…on the road, went 3-3 with a 3.78 ERA (88.0IP, 37ER)...Recorded four of his eight career scoreless starts (6.0IP on 4/5 vs. Baltimore, 7.0IP on 5/21 vs. Chicago-AL, 5.2IP on 7/22 at Boston and 5.0IP on 7/27 at Tampa Bay)…Left the game trailing just twice in his first 12 starts from 4/5-6/8...Made his season debut on 4/5 vs. Baltimore and earned the win, tossing 6.0 scoreless innings (4H, 0BB, 7K)… was his longest scoreless start since 9/16/17 vs. Baltimore (also 6.0IP)…Went undefeated in 11 straight starts from 4/23-6/20, the second-longest undefeated streak of his career (13 games started from 9/4/17-7/31/20)…went 2-0 with a 3.97 ERA (59.0IP, 26ER) with 57K in that span...Allowed multiple home runs in consecutive games for the first time in his career on 4/11 at Tampa Bay (2HR) and 4/17 vs. Tampa Bay (2HR)...Recorded his first career double-digit strikeout game and tossed 7.0 shutout innings on 5/21 vs. Chicago-AL (ND, 5H, 0BB, 11K)…marked the longest scoreless start of his career (previous: 6.0IP – three times, last: 4/5 vs. Baltimore)…his 7.0IP also tied his career high (also 6/9/17 vs. Baltimore and 6/26/17 at Chicago-AL)…Allowed a HR to Matt Olson on 6/20 vs. Oakland, his first HR to a left-handed hitter since 9/4/17 at Baltimore (Chris Davis)…Did not receive a run of support in five straight starts from 6/20-7/16...Allowed 3R-or-fewer in 12 straight starts from 6/20-9/4…was tied for the second-longest streak by a Yankees starting pitcher in the last 40 seasons (since 1982), trailing only Luis Severino’s 16-start stretch from 4/16- 7/7/18…went 2-4 with a 2.66 ERA (64.1IP, 19ER) in that span...Posted a 2.89 ERA (84.0IP, 27ER) in 16 starts from 6/20-9/26, the fourth-lowest ERA in the AL in that span (min. 80.0IP)… allowed 3R-or-fewer in 15 of those 16 starts... Struck out Dominic Smith swinging in the first inning on 7/3 vs. the Mets to record his 300th career strikeout...Threw a career-high 105 pitches on 7/8 at Seattle (4L, 6.2IP, 4H, 3ER, 2BB, 9K, 2HR)...Recorded a career-high 14.2 scoreless inning streak from 7/16-27...Tossed 5.2 shutout innings in a no-decision on 7/22 at Boston (3H, 1BB, 6K, 1WP)…Tossed 5.0 shutout innings and earned the win on 7/27 at Tampa Bay (5H, 3BB, 5K, 1WP, 1BK)… marked the first time in his career he tossed back-to-back scoreless starts...Went undefeated in seven straight starts from 7/22-9/4 after losing a career-high four straight starts from 6/26-7/16…went 2-0 with a 1.50 ERA (36.0IP, 6ER) in that seven-start stretch, allowing one-or-zero runs in six of those starts...Allowed one-or-zero runs in nine of his final 12 starts (7/22-10/2)…Was placed on the COVID-19 injured list on 8/3…missed 13 team games…was reinstated prior to his start on 8/17...Went 1-0 with a 2.18 ERA (20.2IP, 5ER) in four August starts, his lowest ERA in a single calendar month in his career (min. 20.0IP)…Set a career high with 7R allowed in his loss on 9/10 at the Mets (3.1IP, 7H, 7R/5ER, 3BB, 6K, 1HR, 1WP)…Struck out a career-high 12 batters in 5.2IP (6H, 1BB, 1HR, 2WP) on 9/16 at Baltimore…was just the second double-digit strikeout game of his career (also 11K on 5/21 vs. Chicago-AL)…with LHP Nestor Cortes’ 11K on 9/15, it marked just the third time in the last 21 seasons that Yankees starters recorded back-to-back double digit strikeout games (AJ Burnett’s 12K and CC Sabathia’s 10K from 8/27-28/09; CC Sabathia’s 10K and Andy Pettitte’s 10K from 8/13-14/09)…In his final start of the season on 10/2 vs. Tampa Bay, allowed a career-high-tying 7R (also 7R/5ER on 9/10/21 at New York-NL) and a career-high 3HR.
2020
Went 2-3 with a 5.11 ERA (44.0IP, 48H, 27R/25ER, 9BB, 47K, 7HR) in 10 starts in one stint with the Yankees (7/31-9/27)…opponents hit .265 (48-for-181, 7HR); LH .229 (11-for-48, 0HR); RH .278 (37-for-133, 7HR)…had a 3.87 FIP (FanGraphs)...Went 2-1 with a 3.71 ERA (26.2IP, 11ER) in six home starts…allowed 2ER-or-fewer in four of those starts...In four road starts, went 0-2 with a 7.27 ERA (17.1IP, 14ER) and 18K...Walked only nine of his 193BF this season…his 1.84 BB/9.0IP ratio (9BB/44.0IP) this season ranked ninth in the AL (min. 40.0IP)...Made his season debut in the Yankees’ home opener on 7/31 vs. the Red Sox and earned the win (5.2IP, 5H, 1ER, 1BB, 4K, 1HR, 1HP)…marked his longest appearance since tossing 6.0 innings on 4/21/18 vs. Toronto… also earned his first win since 4/21/18…marked the second time in his career that he started the Yankees’ home opener (also 4/3/18 vs. Tampa Bay)…was recalled from the Alternate Site prior to the game...Took the loss in the Yankees’ 5-4 defeat at Philadelphia on 8/6 (4.0IP, 6H, 5ER, 1BB, 2K, 1HR)…allowed 5ER in a game for only the third time in his career (also 6ER in 6.0IP on 7/19/17 at Minnesota and 5ER in 5.0IP on 5/18/17 at Kansas City)...Earned the win in the Yankees’ 9-6 victory vs. the Braves on 8/11 (6.0IP, 4H, 3ER, 1BB, 4K, 1HR)…was his longest outing since 4/21/18 vs. Toronto (6.0IP)...Took the loss on 9/2 vs. Tampa Bay (0.2IP, 5H, 4ER, 1BB, 2K, 2HR), marking the shortest start of his career… allowed five hits to lead off the game, including 4XBH (2 doubles, 2HR), before recording an out…was the second time in his career that he has allowed at least 4XBH in a game (5XBH, 6/15/17 at Oakland)…was the fifth time in his career and the first time at Yankee Stadium he allowed 2HR in a game (also 6/15/17 at Oakland, 7/1/17 at Houston, 8/18/17 at Boston and 9/4/17 at Baltimore)…marked the shortest appearance by a Yankees starter since Chad Green on 8/15/19 vs. Cleveland (0.1IP, 4H, 5ER, 1BB, 1K, 2HR)…was the 10th pitcher in franchise history and first since Dwight Gooden on 8/8/97 at Minnesota (0.2IP, 7H, 6ER, 1BB, 1K, 1HR, 1HP, 4XBH) to not make it out of the first inning and allow 4XBH in a start...On 9/12 vs. Baltimore, struck out a career-high nine batters (previous: 8K on 6/9/17 vs. Baltimore and 6/26/17 at Chicago-AL)…his strikeout of Rio Ruiz (swinging) to end the second inning was the 200th strikeout of his career… after surrendering a one-out walk in the first, did not allow a hit or walk to his next 15 batters faced (8K, 1ROE)… did not allow an earned run for the fifth time in his career and first since 9/24/19 at Tampa Bay (2.0IP)...In his final start of the season on 9/24 at Toronto, recorded 8K in 5.1IP (L, 6H, 3ER, 0BB, 1HR)…marked his third straight start with at least 7K (also a career-high 9K on 9/12 vs. Baltimore and 7K on 9/18 at Boston)… had collected at least 7K just six times over his first 43 career starts…was his fourth career start with at least 8K and first in which he did not issue a walk...Made his first career postseason appearance in ALDS Game 4 vs. Tampa Bay, allowing only 1ER in 4.0IP in the potential elimination game (GS, 3H, 3BB, 4K)…was only the third Yankee since 1982 to allow 1R-or-fewer and toss at least 4.0IP in his postseason debut, joining A.J. Burnett (1R in 6.0IP in 2009 ALDS Game 2 vs. Minnesota) and Orlando Hernández (0R in 7.0IP in 1998 ALCS Game 4)…was just the fourth Yankee in franchise history to start a potential elimination game in his postseason debut, joining Luis Severino (2017 AL Wild Card Game), Masahiro Tanaka (2015 AL Wild Card Game) and Shawn Chacon (2005 ALDS Game 4)…was the only pitcher in group to allow just 1R...Was optioned to the Yankees’ Alternate Site on 7/21 and began the season on the taxi squad.
2019
Made two appearances (one start) with the Yankees, posting a 6.75 ERA (4.0IP, 3ER)...Was placed on the 60-day injured list on 3/23 recovering from left elbow UCL surgery (performed on 6/7/18), missing the Yankees' first 150 games of the season..began a rehab assignment on 8/25 and combined with Single-A Tampa and Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre (one regular season start with each), and Double-A Trenton (two postseason starts) to make four rehab starts, posting a 2.79 ERA (9.2IP, 9H, 5R/3ER, 1BB, 11K)...Was reinstated from the injured list and made his season debut on 9/15 at Toronto, allowing 3ER in 2.0IP (4H, 2K, 1HR) in relief..was his first appearance at the Major League level since 5/1/18 at Houston and his first career relief appearance...Made his only start of the season on 9/24 at Tampa Bay (2.0IP, 3H, 3K).
2018
Made just six starts with the Yankees, going 2-0 with a 3.62 ERA (27.1IP, 25H, 11ER, 12BB, 23K, 3HR)…opponents hit .240 (25-for-104, 3HR); LH .000 (0-for-11), RH .269 (25-for-93, 3HR)…held opponents to a .125 BA (3-for-24) with RISP…the Yankees went 5-1 in his starts…made his first career Opening Day roster...Left his 5/1 start at Houston after 1.0IP with left elbow tightness…was placed on the 10-day disabled list on 5/2 with a left elbow strain…was transferred to the 60-day disabled list on 8/13. 4 On 6/7, underwent "Tommy John" surgery on his left elbow, performed by Yankees Head Team Physician Dr. Christopher Ahmad at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital…a loose bone chip was also removed from the elbow...Made six spring training appearances (five starts), going 2-2 with a 3.43 ERA (21.0IP, 8ER) and 20K.
2017
In his first Major League season, went 9-7 with a 3.88 ERA (155.1IP, 140H, 72R/67ER, 51BB, 144K, 21HR) in 29 starts over five stints with the Yankees (4/12-7/8, 7/14-8/6, 8/11-19, 8/30, 9/1-end of season)…opponents hit .236 (140-for-592); LH .195 (17-for-87); RH .244 (123-for-505)…had 2.7 WAR and a 4.07 FIP (FanGraphs)…the Yankees went 13-16 in his starts... Finished sixth in AL Rookie of the Year voting, receiving one second-place vote and one third-place vote (4 pts.)... was also named to the Topps MLB All-Star Rookie Team... Led AL rookies in starts, strikeouts and innings pitched…tied for second in wins (Los Angeles-AL's Parker Bridwell, 10-3)…finished second in strikeouts among MLB rookies to Colorado's Germán Marquez (147), tied Marquez for the most starts, was fourth in innings pitched and tied for fifth in wins…led Major League rookie pitchers in WAR... His 144K were the sixth-highest single-season total by a rookie in Yankees history: Russ Ford (209 in 1910), Al Downing (171 in 1963), Stan Bahnsen (162 in 1968), Doc Medich (145 in 1973), Ray Caldwell (145 in 1911)... His 29 starts were fifth-most by a rookie pitcher in a single season in Yankees history, second among left-handers to Fritz Peterson (32 starts in 1966)…were the most by any Yankees rookie since Doc Medich (32) in 1973…were the most by an AL rookie since Tampa Bay's Jake Odorizzi (31), Kansas City's Yordano Ventura (30) and Seattle's Roenis Elías (29) in 2014... Was the third Yankees rookie since 1974 to throw at least 150.0IP in a season, joining Iván Nova (165.1IP in 2011) and Andy Pettitte (175.0IP in 1995)... Limited LHB to a .195 BA (17-for-87), sixth-lowest among AL starters (min. 75AB by LHB)…faced just 96 LHB (14.8% of batters faced), compared to 553 RHB (85.2%)…faced strictly RHBs in six starts... Held opponents to a .221 BA (27-for-122) with RISP, eighth-lowest in the AL (min. 100AB with RISP)... Opponents swung at 33.2% of his pitches outside the strike zone, the ninth-highest "chase rate" among Major League pitchers with at least 150.0IP (FanGraphs)…according to Brooks Baseball, opponents batted a combined .185 (67-for-362) with 121K against his three offspeed pitches (changeup/slider/curveball)... Was 6-3 with a 3.43 ERA (81.1IP, 31ER) in 15 starts at home…his 0.77 HR/9.0IP ratio (7HR/81.1IP) at Yankee Stadium was the sixth-lowest by a Yankees pitcher in the nine-year history of the Stadium (min. 75.0IP)…did not allow a HR over his final seven home starts, tied for the second-longest streak of homerless starts at the current Yankee Stadium (David Phelps-9 from 9/19/12-6/2/14, CC Sabathia-7 from 5/24-7/26/11)…allowed 2ER-or-fewer in 10-of-15 starts... Made his Major League debut in 4/12 win vs. Tampa Bay (ND, 4.2IP, 5H, 3R/2ER, 2BB, 7K, 1HR, 1HP)…was signed to a Major League contract and selected to the 25-man roster prior to the game…struck out his first two batters faced (Steven Souza Jr., Kevin Kiermaier)…was the first Yankees left-hander to make his Major League debut as a starter since Chase Wright on 4/17/07 vs. Cleveland…his 7K were the second-most by a Yankees left-hander in his MLB debut since 1913, behind only Al Leiter (8K on 9/15/87 vs. Milwaukee)…along with C Kyle Higashioka (first career start in second career game), became the first Yankees battery to each make their first Major League starts in the same game since RHP Jorge De Paula and C Michel Hernandez on 9/26/03 vs. Baltimore... Earned his first career win in his second career start on 4/17 vs. Chicago-AL, taking a shutout into the seventh inning…is one of five Yankees left-handers since 1913 to start Yankees victories in each of his first two Major League games, joining Ray Fontenot (1983), Bill Miller (1952), Art Schallock (1951) and Russ Van Atta (1933)... Was 4-0 with a 2.59 ERA (31.1IP, 9ER) in five June starts…was the first Yankees rookie starter to go 4-0 or better with an ERA under 3.00 in a calendar month since Stan Bahnsen in May 1968 (4-0, 1.93)... Was 6-4 with a 3.53 ERA (81.2IP, 32ER) in 14 starts from April-June and 3-3 with a 4.28 ERA (73.2IP, 35ER) in 15 starts from July-October ... went 2-0 with a 1.04 ERA (17.1IP, 2ER) in his final three starts... On 8/12 vs. Boston, was hit on the head by a flyball during Red Sox batting practice, but made his start the next day... Went 0-for-3 with 2BB at the plate... drew a walk in his first Major League plate appearance on 4/23 at Pittsburgh... had not batted in an official game since he was at Sumter H.S. (S.C.)... Went 0-0 with a 1.13 ERA (8.0IP, 1ER) in two minor league starts…made his first start of the season with Single-A Tampa on 4/6 vs. Lakeland, allowing 1R/0ER in 5.0IP (3H, 1BB, 8K)…also started for Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre on 8/24 at Rochester (3.0IP, 2H, 1ER, 0BB, 3K)... Went 1-0 with one save and a 3.20 ERA (19.2IP, 7ER) in six games (two starts) in Major League spring training…retired all 12BF over 4.0 perfect innings to earn the save in a team no-hitter on 3/17 at Detroit.
2016
Combined with Double-A Trenton and Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre to go 14-5 with 2.13 ERA (139.1IP, 122H, 39R/33ER, 45BB, 134K) in 25 starts…recorded the seventh-lowest ERA among all minor leaguers (min. 125.0IP)…tied for the most wins among all Yankees minor leaguers, was second in strikeouts and third in ERA…held opponents to a .232 BA (122-for-525, 5HR); LH .230 (32-for-139, 3HR); RH .233 (90-for-386, 2HR)... Began the season with Trenton, going 9-4 with a 2.55 ERA (102.1IP, 94H, 35R/29ER, 36BB, 97K) in 19 starts…was named an Eastern League Mid-Season and Postseason All-Star…allowed 2ER-or-fewer in 13-of-19 starts with Trenton…recorded a career-high 11K on 6/15 vs. Harrisburg... Was promoted to Scranton/WB on 8/1 and went 5-1 with a 0.97 ERA (37.0IP, 28H, 4ER, 9BB, 37K) in six starts…recorded a 29.1-inning scoreless streak from 8/7-31…recorded at least 8K in three of his six starts... Went 1-1 with a 3.52 ERA (7.2IP, 3ER) in two postseason starts for Scranton/WB…also earned the win in the franchise's first Triple-A National Championship vs. El Paso (5.0IP, 6H, 1ER, 0BB, 5K)... Following the season, was tabbed by Baseball America as having the Eastern League's "Best Breaking Pitch."
2015
Led Yankees farmhands with 132K, combining with Single-A Charleston and Single-A Tampa to post a 10-8 record with a 2.95 ERA (134.1IP, 118H, 51R/44ER, 36BB, 132K, 5HR) and one complete game in 25 games (24 starts)…had the seventh-lowest ERA in the organization…held opponents to a .236 (118-for-500) BA…allowed 1ER-or-fewer in 11-of-25 games... Logged a 4-3 record and 2.68 ERA (43.2IP, 36H, 15R/13ER, 12BB, 55K) in nine starts at Charleston…earned South Atlantic League "Pitcher of the Week" honors for 5/18-24 after going 1-0 with a 0.79 ERA (11.1IP, 4H, 1ER, 0BB, 15K) in two starts…allowed 2H over 7.0 shutout innings (0BB, 8K) on 5/23 at Greenville... Was promoted to Tampa on 6/1 and went 6-5 with a 3.08 ERA (90.2IP, 82H, 36R/31ER, 24BB, 77K) and 1CG in 16 games (15 starts)…retired 20-of-22 batters faced in his Tampa debut on 6/3-G2 at Lakeland, issuing 1HP and allowing a runner to reach on an error (6.2IP, 0H, 1R/0ER, 0BB, 6K)…was named Florida State League "Pitcher of the Week" for 8/24-30 after throwing 6.0 perfect innings with 8K on 8/28 at Daytona.
2014
In his professional debut, combined with the GCL Yankees 2 (three starts) and short-season Single-A StatenIsland (seven games/four starts) to go 1-1 with a 3.79 ERA (19.0IP, 16H, 10R/8ER, 6BB, 20K)…opponents batted.222 (16-for-72).
