Theodore Jared Garvin was born on October 21, 1955 in Oakland, California. His family later moved to Merced, California where he played baseball for Merced High School. He was initially drafted by the Baltimore Orioles of the American League (AL) in the 17th round of the 1973 Major League Baseball Draft that was held on June 5, but he did not sign a contract with the team. He re-entered the draft in time for the January secondary draft held on January 9, when he was drafted by the Minnesota Twins, also of the AL. He signed with the Twins franchise and was assigned to the class-A Wisconsin Rapids Twins of the Midwest League.\n', '

Garvin began his pitching career with four wins by the end of April, the first rookie to do so in baseball history. He was battling influenza when he was defeated by the Yankees on June 30, his fourth consecutive loss. He finished the season with a record of 10-18, and became known for his ability to pick off runners at first. In fact, Garvin established an unofficial Major League record of 26 pickoffs in the 1977 season, although this was not recognized in the record books; official statistics had never distinguished between pickoffs and runners caught stealing by any other method.\n', '

His 34 games started stands as the Blue Jays\' rookie record, though tied by Gustavo Chacín in 2006. He surrendered 33 home runs during the season, the most allowed by a Blue Jays pitcher until Woody Williams allowed 36 in 1998.\n', '

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