Casey Arthur Mize (born May 1, 1997) is an American professional

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball sport played between two team sport, teams of nine players each, taking turns batting (baseball), batting and Fielding (baseball), fielding. The game occurs over the course of several Pitch ...

pitcher In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throws ("Pitch (baseball), pitches") the Baseball (ball), baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of out (baseball), retiring a batter (baseball), batter, ...

for the

Detroit Tigers The Detroit Tigers are an American professional baseball team based in Detroit. The Tigers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League Central, Central Division. One of the AL's eight chart ...

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball league composed of 30 teams, divided equally between the National League (baseball), National League (NL) and the American League (AL), with 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. MLB i ...

(MLB). He was selected by the Tigers with the first overall pick in the 2018 MLB draft. He played

college baseball College baseball is baseball that is played by Student athlete, student-athletes at institutions of higher education. In the United States, college baseball is sanctioned mainly by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA); in Japan, ...

for the

Auburn Tigers The Auburn Tigers are the athletic teams representing Auburn University, a public four-year university located in Auburn, Alabama, United States. The Auburn Tigers compete in Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) a ...

Amateur career

Mize attended Springville High School in

Springville, Alabama Springville is a city in St. Clair County, Alabama, United States. It incorporated in December 1880. At the 2020 census the population was 4,786, up from 4,080 in 2010. Geography Springville is located at (33.768950, −86.471037). According ...

. During his high school career, he went 19–2. He committed to

Auburn University Auburn University (AU or Auburn) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Auburn, Alabama, United States. With more than 26,800 undergraduate students, over 6,100 post-graduate students, and a tota ...

to play

. As a freshman in 2016, he appeared in 16 games with 7 starts and went 2–5 with a 3.52

earned run average In baseball statistics, earned run average (ERA) is the average of earned runs allowed by a pitcher per nine innings pitched (i.e. the traditional length of a game). It is determined by dividing the number of earned runs allowed by the number ...

(ERA) and 59

strikeouts In baseball or softball, a strikeout (or strike-out) occurs when a batter accumulates three strikes during a time at bat. It means the batter is out, unless the third strike is not caught by the catcher and the batter reaches first base safe ...

. After the 2016 season, he played

collegiate summer baseball Collegiate summer baseball leagues are amateur baseball leagues in the United States and Canada featuring players who have attended at least one year of college and have at least one year of athletic eligibility remaining. Generally, they operat ...

with the

Wareham Gatemen The Wareham Gatemen are a collegiate summer baseball team based in Wareham, Massachusetts. The team is a member of the Cape Cod Baseball League (CCBL) and plays in the league's West Division. The Gatemen play their home games at Clem Spillane Fie ...

of the

Cape Cod Baseball League The Cape Cod Baseball League (CCBL or Cape League) is a collegiate summer baseball wooden bat league located on Cape Cod in the U.S. state of Massachusetts. One of the nation's premier collegiate summer leagues, the league boasts over 1,000 forme ...

. As a sophomore in 2017, Mize pitched in 13 games with 12 starts, going 8–2 with a 2.04 ERA with 109 strikeouts and only nine walks. After the season, he played for the United States collegiate national team during the summer. Mize was named Auburn's opening day starter for the 2018 season. On March 9, 2018, Mize threw a no-hitter against the

Northeastern Huskies The Northeastern Huskies are the athletic teams representing Northeastern University in Boston, Massachusetts. They compete in thirteen varsity team sports: men's and women's hockey (in Hockey East); men's baseball, men's and women's basketball ...

, the ninth in program history. Mize finished the 2018 season 10-6 with a 3.30 ERA and 156 strikeouts over 17 starts.

Professional career

Minor leagues

2018

The

selected Mize with the first overall pick in the 2018 MLB draft. On June 25, 2018, Mize signed with the Tigers, featuring a $7.5 million

signing bonus A signing bonus or sign-on bonus is a sum of money paid to a new employee (including a professional sports person) by a company as an incentive to join that company. They are often given as a way of making a compensation package more attractive ...

. He made his professional debut with the

Gulf Coast Tigers The Florida Complex League Tigers are a Rookie-level affiliate of the Detroit Tigers, competing in the Florida Complex League of Minor League Baseball. Prior to 2021, the team was known as the Gulf Coast League Tigers. The team plays its home game ...

of the

Rookie-level Minor League Baseball (MiLB) is a professional baseball organization below Major League Baseball (MLB), constituted of teams affiliated with MLB clubs. It was founded on September 5, 1901, in response to the growing dominance of the National L ...

Gulf Coast League The Florida Complex League (FCL) is a rookie-level Minor League Baseball league that operates in Florida, United States. Before 2021, it was known as the Gulf Coast League (GCL). Together with the Arizona Complex League (ACL), it forms the low ...

. After one start, he was promoted to the

Lakeland Flying Tigers The Lakeland Flying Tigers are a Minor League Baseball team of the Florida State League and the Single-A affiliate of the Detroit Tigers. They are located in Lakeland, Florida, and play their home games at Publix Field at Joker Marchant Stadium. ...

of the High–A

Florida State League The Florida State League (FSL) is a Minor League Baseball league based in the state of Florida. Having been classified at various levels throughout its existence, it operated at Class A-Advanced from 1990 until its demotion to Single-A following ...

. After compiling a combined 0–1 record with a 3.95 ERA in five starts between both teams, Mize was shut down for the rest of the season due to an innings limit.

2019

In 2019, the Tigers invited Mize to

spring training Spring training, also called spring camp, is the preseason of the Summer Professional Baseball Leagues, such as Major League Baseball (MLB), and it is a series of practices and exhibition games preceding the start of the regular season. Spri ...

as a non-roster player. He returned to Lakeland to begin the 2019 season, and was its Opening Day starter. After making four starts for Lakeland with an 0.35 ERA, the Tigers promoted Mize to the

Erie SeaWolves The Erie SeaWolves are an American professional baseball team based in Erie, Pennsylvania. They compete in Minor League Baseball (MiLB) as a member of the Eastern League's Southwest Division, serving as the Double-A affiliate of the Detroit Ti ...

of the Double–A Eastern League. In his first start for Erie, he tossed a no-hitter, in which he hit a batter, walked another, and struck out seven on 98 pitches, in a 1–0 SeaWolves victory over the

Altoona Curve The Altoona Curve are a Minor League Baseball team based in Altoona, Pennsylvania, named after nearby Horseshoe Curve (but also alluding to the curveball, a type of pitch). The team plays in the Eastern League and is the Double-A affiliate of ...

. On June 15, Mize was placed on the 7-day

injured list In Major League Baseball (MLB), the injured list (IL) is a method for teams to remove their injured players from the roster in order to summon healthy players. Before the 2019 season, it was known as the disabled list (DL). General guidelines ...

with shoulder inflammation.

Detroit Tigers

2020

On August 19, 2020, Mize was promoted to the major leagues by the Tigers and made his MLB debut that evening against the

Chicago White Sox The Chicago White Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The White Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League Central, Central Division. The club plays its ...

. Mize threw 73 pitches over innings in his first start, allowing three earned runs while striking out seven and walking none in a no-decision. On September 11 against the

, Mize took a

no-hitter In baseball, a no-hitter or no-hit game is a game in which a team does not record a hit (baseball), hit through conventional methods. Major League Baseball (MLB) officially defines a no-hitter as a completed game in which a team that batted in ...

into the sixth inning, before a double by Yolmer Sánchez ruined the no-hit bid. With the 2020 Detroit Tigers, Mize appeared in seven games, compiling a 0–3 record with 6.99 ERA and 26 strikeouts in innings pitched.

2021

On March 26, 2021, Tigers manager A. J. Hinch announced that Mize would be in the Tigers starting rotation to begin the 2021 season. On April 12, Mize earned his first major league win, throwing seven scoreless innings in the Tigers' 6–2 victory over the

Houston Astros The Houston Astros are an American professional baseball team based in Houston. The Astros compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League West, West Division. They are one of two major leag ...

. In an August 24 road game against the

St. Louis Cardinals The St. Louis Cardinals are an American professional baseball team based in St. Louis. The Cardinals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Centra ...

, Mize made his major league debut as a batter, and collected an RBI on a bases-loaded walk. He also earned the win with five scoreless innings. Mize made 30 starts in the 2021 season, posting a 7–9 record and 3.71 ERA. He struck out 118 batters in innings, while allowing 130 hits and 41 walks for a 1.137 WHIP.

2022

Mize began the 2022 season as the No. 2 starter in the Tigers rotation. On April 15, the Tigers placed Mize on the 10-day injured list with a right elbow sprain. On June 10, he went on the Tigers' 60-day Injured List. It was revealed that Mize needed

Tommy John surgery Ulnar collateral ligament reconstruction, sometimes referred to as Tommy John surgery is a surgical graft procedure where the ulnar collateral ligament in the medial elbow is replaced with either a tendon from elsewhere in the patient's body, ...

, which prematurely ended his 2022 season.

2023

Mize did not pitch in a professional game in 2023 as he continued his recovery from Tommy John surgery.

2024

Entering the 2024 season, Mize made the Tigers'

Opening Day Opening Day is the day on which professional baseball leagues begin their regular season. For Major League Baseball (MLB) and most of the American minor leagues, this day typically falls during the first week of April, although in recent year ...

roster as part of their rotation, beating out Matt Manning for one of the final spots. He was named the team's number five starter. Mize made his first 16 starts of the 2024 season before being placed on the 15-day injured list with a left hamstring strain on July 3. He was transferred to the 60–day injured list on July 29. Mize was activated on August 30. He finished the 2024 season with a 2–6 record, 4.49 ERA and 78 strikeouts in innings. In November 2024, the Tigers declined Mize's $3.1 million option for the 2025 season, making Mize arbitration eligible.

2025

On January 9, 2025, the Tigers and Mize agreed to a one-year, $2.34 million contract, avoiding arbitration. Mize made the Tigers 2025 rotation as the No. 5 starter. On May 10, the Tigers placed Mize on the 15-day injured list with a strained left hamstring. Mize was activated on May 24, and started against the

Cleveland Guardians The Cleveland Guardians are an American professional baseball team based in Cleveland. The Guardians compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central Division. Since , the team has played its home gam ...

that evening.

Pitch selection

Mize throws a four-seam

fastball The fastball is the most common type of pitch (baseball), pitch thrown by pitchers in baseball and softball. Its distinctive feature is its high speed. "Power pitchers," such as former major leaguers Nolan Ryan and Roger Clemens, relied on the ...

averaging 93-96 MPH (150-155 KPH) that tops out at 98 MPH (158 KPH), and a sinking two-seam fastball that averages 92-95 MPH (148-153 KPH). His primary offspeed pitch is a splitter in the 84-88 MPH (135-142 KPH) range for his career. He has added velocity to this pitch in 2025, frequently throwing it at 90 MPH (145 KPH) or higher. He also throws an occasional slider averaging 86 MPH (138 KPH) and a

curveball In baseball and softball, the curveball is a type of pitch thrown with a characteristic grip and hand movement that imparts forward spin to the ball, causing it to dive as it approaches the plate. Varieties of curveball include the 12–6 curve ...

averaging 84 MPH (135 KPH).

Personal life

Mize and his wife, Tali, were married in 2019. They reside in

Nashville, Tennessee Nashville, often known as Music City, is the capital and List of municipalities in Tennessee, most populous city in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is the county seat, seat of Davidson County, Tennessee, Davidson County in Middle Tennessee, locat ...

References

External links

Auburn Tigers bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mize, Casey 1997 births Living people All-American college baseball players Auburn Tigers baseball players Baseball players from Alabama Detroit Tigers players Erie SeaWolves players Gulf Coast Tigers players Lakeland Flying Tigers players Major League Baseball pitchers People from Springville, Alabama Toledo Mud Hens players United States national baseball team players Wareham Gatemen players