John Gant | |||
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Gant with the Braves in 2016
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St. Louis Cardinals – No. 53 | |||
Pitcher | |||
Born: Savannah, Georgia |
August 6, 1992 |||
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MLB debut | |||
April 6, 2016, for the Atlanta Braves | |||
MLB statistics (through June 6, 2017) |
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Win–loss record | 1–4 | ||
Earned run average | 4.89 | ||
Strikeouts | 52 | ||
Teams | |||
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John Michael Gant (born August 6, 1992) is an American professional baseball pitcher for the St. Louis Cardinals of Major League Baseball (MLB). He made his MLB debut with the Atlanta Braves in 2016.
Gant was drafted by the New York Mets in the 21st round of the 2011 Major League Baseball Draft out of Wiregrass Ranch High School in Wesley Chapel, Florida. Gant had previously committed to play for Long Island University. He signed with the Mets and made his professional debut with the Gulf Coast Mets. Gant spent 2012 with the Kingsport Mets and pitched one game for the Savannah Sand Gnats. He played 2013 with the Brooklyn Cyclones and 2014 back with Savannah. Gant began the 2015 season in the Binghamton Mets starting rotation.
On July 24, 2015, the Mets traded Gant and Rob Whalen to the Atlanta Braves for Juan Uribe and Kelly Johnson. He was assigned to their Double A affiliate, the Mississippi Braves. The Braves added him to their 40-man roster after the season. Gant was invited to spring training to begin the 2016 season, and pitched well enough for the team to consider placing him in the major league bullpen, though Gant had worked primarily as a starter in the minor leagues. He pitched 15 1⁄3 innings and allowed four earned runs in spring training, making the Opening Day roster as a reliever. He made his Major League debut on April 6, 2016 pitching a scoreless ninth inning against the Washington Nationals, giving up one single and striking out one. Four days later, Gant was sent to the minor leagues, and placed in the Gwinnett Braves starting rotation. In subsequent callups to the major leagues, Gant pitched in relief. He and Casey Kelly were the two pitchers who spent the most time between the major and minor league levels in the beginning of the season, as the Braves tried balancing the needs of their bullpen against the possibility of overusing pitchers. Gant made his first major league start against the Chicago Cubs on June 12, yielding two earned runs and four hits in 4 1⁄3 innings, while taking the loss. Gant made his second start against the New York Mets on June 18, and earned a win. On June 27, Gant started against the Cleveland Indians. He was taken out of the game after straining his oblique and placed on the disabled list. Gant came off the DL on August 21, and was placed in the bullpen. A week later, he was optioned to Gwinnett to clear a roster spot for Aaron Blair, only to recalled on August 30.