Cleveland Indians Archer was drafted by the
Cleveland Indians in the fifth round of the
2006 MLB draft. He joined the
Rookie-level Gulf Coast Indians after signing. He also pitched in one game for the
Burlington Indians of the Rookie-level
Appalachian League. Archer remained with the Gulf Coast Indians to start the 2007 season. In 2008, Archer had a 4–8
win–loss record in 27
games started for the
Lake County Captains of the
Single–A South Atlantic League.
Chicago Cubs On December 31, 2008, Archer was traded, with
John Gaub and
Jeff Stevens to the
Chicago Cubs for
Mark DeRosa. Archer pitched for the
Peoria Chiefs of the Single–A
Midwest League during the 2009 season, and was 6–4 with a 2.81 ERA and 119 strikeouts (seventh in the league) in 109 innings while leading the league with 66 walks, and not allowing any home runs. In 2010, Archer had a 15–3 win–loss record with a 2.34
earned run average (ERA) and 149 strikeouts in 142.1 innings between the
Daytona Cubs of the
High–A Florida State League and
Tennessee Smokies of the
Double–A Southern League. He was third among all minor league pitcher in wins, and seventh in ERA. He was named the Cubs' Minor League Pitcher of the Year, and the Cubs added him to their
40-man roster to protect him from being selected by another team in the
Rule 5 Draft. After the season, Archer pitched for the
United States national baseball team in the qualifying tournament for the
2011 Pan American Games. Defeating the
Cuban national baseball team,
USA Baseball called Archer's game the International Performance of the Year.
Tampa Bay Rays In January 2011, the Cubs traded Archer to the
Tampa Bay Rays with
Hak-ju Lee,
Brandon Guyer,
Robinson Chirinos, and
Sam Fuld for
Matt Garza,
Fernando Perez, and
Zac Rosscup. At the start of the season, he was rated the 27th-best prospect in baseball by
Baseball America. Pitching for the
Montgomery Biscuits of the
Double–A Southern League, Archer had a 5.85 ERA through the first two months of the season and a 5.27 ERA at the end of the first half of the season. Archer received a promotion to the
Durham Bulls of the
Triple–A International League, making two starts for the Bulls at the end of the season, and allowing only one
run. Archer pitched to a 4–8 win–loss record with a 4.81 ERA in 14
games started for Durham to start the 2012 season. He was promoted to the major leagues for the first time on June 20, starting in place of the injured
Jeremy Hellickson. In his MLB debut, Archer allowed three hits and three runs (one earned) while recording seven strikeouts in six innings, becoming the first pitcher the Rays did not draft to start a game for the team since
Matt Garza on September 30, 2010. Archer became the first pitcher to register an at-bat at
Oriole Park at Camden Yards when he finished an at-bat for injured
Ryan Roberts, striking out under orders not to swing. He recorded his first major league win on September 19, 2012, against the Boston Red Sox at
Tropicana Field after going five innings and giving up three earned runs. In 2012 with the Bulls, he was 7–9 with a 3.66 ERA, and led the league with 139 strikeouts in 128 innings.
2013 season Archer began the 2013 season with Triple-A Durham. He was called up on June 1, 2013, to start against the
Cleveland Indians. In his first extended action in the majors, Archer went 9–7 with a 3.22 ERA in 23 starts. Among AL rookies, Archer ranked first in ERA, opponents' average (.226), complete games (two), shutouts (two), hits per nine innings (7.5) and WHIP (1.13). He was named the AL Pitcher of the Month and AL Rookie of the Month for July. Archer finished third in voting for AL Rookie of the Year, behind Detroit's
Jose Iglesias and teammate
Wil Myers.
2014 season On April 2, 2014, it was announced that Archer had agreed to a six-year extension with the Rays worth $25.5 million guaranteed. The two option years would pay Archer about $9 million and $11 million, with the total contract maxing out at $43.75 million for all eight seasons. For the season, he went 10–9 with a 3.33 ERA, 1.28 WHIP and 173 strikeouts in innings pitched.
2015 season Archer was named the Rays' Opening Day starter after
Alex Cobb was placed on the 15-day Disabled List to begin the season. On June 2, Archer struck out 15 batters in a 6–1 victory over the
Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim. Archer was selected to the
2015 MLB All-Star Game, where he pitched 1.1 innings and gave up one run. On August 20, he threw a one-hit shutout against the
Houston Astros, in which he threw only 98 pitches and struck out 11. Archer finished the season 12–13 with a 3.23 ERA (fifth in the league) and 252 strikeouts (second), in 212 innings (sixth). His strikeout total surpassed
Scott Kazmir's 2007 total of 239 for the most in a single season by a Rays pitcher. Archer finished 5th in the American League
Cy Young Award voting, behind
Dallas Keuchel,
David Price,
Sonny Gray, and
Chris Sale. Archer rebounded strongly in the second half, however, and posted a 3.25 ERA. He finished the season with a 4.02 ERA, 233 strikeouts (tied for second in the
American League behind
Justin Verlander), and a 10.4
strikeouts per nine ratio, in 201.1 innings (8th). He also led the majors with 19 losses, which can be attributed to his giving up 30 home runs and poor 3.48
run support.
2017 season After pitching in the World Baseball Classic, Archer received the nod as the Rays opening day starter. He allowed only 2 runs in 7 innings, receiving the win. In May, Archer set a franchise record for strikeouts in a month with 58, topping
David Price's record of 53. On July 6, Archer was named to his second career
all-star game. On August 17, Archer recorded his 1,000th career strikeout, becoming the 9th player in history to achieve this feat in 154 games or less. After a strong end to August, capped off by a 7 inning, one run performance in St. Louis, Archer looked poised to finish above .500 for the first time since 2014, ending the month of August at 9–7 with a 3.66 ERA. However over his next 5 games he went 0–5 allowing 18 runs and failing to get past the 4th inning in 4 of the 5 games played, and his ERA skyrocketed to 4.18. His ended his season with a 10–12 record and a 4.07 ERA, a career high. He did, however, finish the season with 249 strikeouts, good for 3rd in the American League, as well as an 11.1 strikeouts per nine ratio, in 201 innings (6th). He tied for the major league lead in wild pitches, with 15.
2018 season Archer was chosen as the opening day starter for the fourth year in a row. On May 1, Archer threw his 1,000th career inning. On June 5, Archer was put on the
10-day disabled list with an abdominal strain.
Pittsburgh Pirates On July 31, 2018, Archer was traded to the
Pittsburgh Pirates in exchange for
Tyler Glasnow,
Austin Meadows and a
player to be named later, later revealed to be
Shane Baz. In a game on April 7, 2019, against the
Cincinnati Reds, Archer gave up a second-inning, two-run home run to
Derek Dietrich. As the ball flew over the wall, Dietrich stayed at home plate and admired the ball for a few seconds as it went over before he started running. When Dietrich returned to bat in the fourth inning, Archer threw a ball behind Dietrich's back. Benches cleared, five people were ejected, and Archer struck out Dietrich when play resumed. Archer denied intent, but received a five-game suspension on April 9. For the season, he was 3–9 with a career-worst 5.19 ERA. On October 31, 2020, the Pirates declined Archer's club option for 2021, making him a free agent for the first time in his career.
Tampa Bay Rays (second stint) On February 9, 2021, Archer signed a one-year, $6.5 million contract with Tampa Bay. On May 8, 2021, Archer was placed on the 60-day injured list with forearm tightness. On August 22, the Rays activated Archer from the injured list.
Minnesota Twins On March 28, 2022, Archer signed a one-year contract with the
Minnesota Twins. On November 7, 2022, the Twins declined the option on his 2023 season, making him a free agent. ==Post-playing career==