Jaime García was born on July 8, 1986 in Reynosa, Tamaulipas, Mexico, as the second of three children to civil engineer Jaime García, Sr., and Gloria Rodríguez Flores. He was raised between the border of Reynosa, and McAllen, Texas. He attended Sharyland High School in Mission, Texas.

García made his major league debut in relief on July 11, 2008, against the Pittsburgh Pirates. He pitched two innings, giving up one hit, walking one, and striking out two.

García underwent Tommy John surgery after the 2008 season and began the 2009 season on the 60-day disabled list. Later in the 2009 season, García returned to the Cardinals organization and was optioned to the Triple-A Memphis Redbirds. On September 9, 2009, García retired the first 13 batters he faced in the Redbirds’ first playoff game against the Albuquerque Isotopes.

The 2010 MLB season was García’s first full season in the majors. He was chosen as the number five starter over fellow lefty Rich Hill, who started the season with the Memphis Redbirds in AAA, and Kyle McClellan, who returned to the bullpen for the Cardinals. He finished the season in third place in the voting for NL Rookie of the Year with a record of 13–8, and an ERA of 2.70 (4th in the NL). García was named a starting pitcher on Baseball America’s 2010 All-Rookie Team and a pitcher on the 2010 Topps Major League Rookie All-Star Team.

García went 7–7 with a 3.92 ERA in 20 starts in the 2012 season before being shutdown for the year due to shoulder discomfort. The Cardinals would go on to be one win away from going to the 2012 World Series before losing to the San Francisco Giants in the NLCS.

In 2013, García went 5–2 with a 3.58 ERA before being injured and ultimately undergoing season-ending shoulder surgery, with his last start on May 17.

García was initially thought to be able to play at the start of the 2014 season, but developed shoulder bursitis and was unable to pitch in the major leagues for 366 days until activated, with his first start on May 18, 2014. In his fifth start of the season on June 8, García held the Toronto Blue Jays to seven scoreless innings to earn the win in a 5–0 victory. In the first inning of the game, he issued his first walks of the season, which he had avoided in his first 24 ⁄3 IP. However, he informed the Cardinals on July 5 that he would have surgery on his left shoulder to correct thoracic outlet syndrome, ending his second consecutive season with fewer than ten starts.

In May 2015, García returned to pitch for the Cardinals. He lost his first start to the New York Mets, 5–0, despite allowing just two runs in seven innings. He gained his first win in nearly a year on May 26 against the Arizona Diamondbacks, in which he completed six innings in a 6–4 victory. His next start, on June 1, was against the Brewers. In seven innings, he allowed one run and struck out four, with less than 90 pitches, but ended up with a 1–0 loss, bringing his record to 1–2 with a 2.70 ERA in his first three games.

While completing 8 ⁄3 innings against the Miami Marlins on August 14 in a 3–1 win, one of the hits García allowed was to Ichiro Suzuki, for his 4,191st hit in professional baseball, matching Ty Cobb. García achieved his 50th career win in a 4–1 decision over the Pirates on September 5, also reaching 100 IP in a season for the first time since 2012. Totaling 20 regular season starts, he finished the season with 10–6 won–loss record, 2.43 ERA, and 1.046 walks plus hits per inning pitched (WHIP). The Cardinals won 10 of his 11 starts in August and September; and, at Busch Stadium, he turned in nine quality starts in 10 attempts, allowing a 1.70 ERA and 0.888 WHIP. The Cardinals won 100 games and the National League Central division title. He started Game 2 of the NLDS against the Cubs, but lasted just two innings as the Cardinals lost this game 6–3 before the Cubs eliminated the Cardinals. On October 31, 2015, the Cardinals announced they exercised García’s team option for 2016 worth $11.5 million.

On December 1, 2016, the St. Louis Cardinals traded García to the Atlanta Braves for Chris Ellis, John Gant, and Luke Dykstra. On July 21, 2017, in the Braves’ 12–3 win over the Los Angeles Dodgers, García helped his team’s cause with his first grand slam, while also picking up the win on the mound in what would be his final start for Atlanta. In 18 starts with the Braves, García had a 4–7 record with an ERA of 4.30 in 113 innings.

On July 24, 2017, the Braves traded García and Anthony Recker to the Minnesota Twins for prospect Huascar Ynoa. A free agent at season’s end, García was reportedly involved in trade discussions before even making a start for Minnesota, as they were quickly falling behind Cleveland and Kansas City in the AL Central standings. García debuted for the Twins against Oakland on July 28. He made only one start for the Twins, giving up three runs in 6 ⁄3 innings while striking out seven for a win.

On July 30, 2017, the Twins traded García and cash considerations to the New York Yankees in exchange for minor league pitchers Dietrich Enns and Zack Littell. Minnesota opted to pick up the remainder of García’s $12 million salary for 2017, leaving New York to pay the pro-rated minimum. He became the first pitcher to start three consecutive games for three separate teams since Gus Weyhing in 1895. He also became the first pitcher ever to start for three different teams in only 15 days: the previous record was 23 days, by Ed Daily and Ron Darling.

On February 15, 2018, García signed a one-year, $8 million contract with the Toronto Blue Jays. The contract includes a team option for the 2019 season. García made his first start for the Blue Jays on April 2 against the Chicago White Sox. He pitched 6 innings, allowing 1 run on 4 hits while striking out 7, and earned a no-decision in Toronto’s 4–2 victory. García earned his first win as a Blue Jay in his next start, throwing 5⁄3 innings and allowing 3 runs in Toronto’s 7–4 win against the Texas Rangers. He was placed on the 10-day disabled list on May 18 and was activated on May 26. He was placed on the disabled list for a second time with left shoulder inflammation on June 23, and was activated on July 15. On August 25, García was designated for assignment. He was released on August 29.

On August 31, 2018, Garcia signed a minor league contract with the Chicago Cubs. He had his contract selected on September 4.

On January 9, 2019, Garcia announced his retirement.