Casey A. Mize (born May 1, 1997) is an American

professional baseball Professional baseball is organized baseball in which players are selected for their talents and are paid to play for a specific team or club system. It is played in leagues and associated farm teams throughout the world. Modern professiona ...

pitcher In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throws ("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, who attempts to e ...

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 of the American League (AL) Central division. One of the AL's eight charter franchises, the club was f ...

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL) ...

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

2018 MLB draft The 2018 Major League Baseball (MLB) First-Year Player Draft began on June 4, 2018. The draft assigned amateur baseball players to MLB teams. The draft order was determined based on the reverse order of the 2017 MLB season final standings. In ad ...

. He played

college baseball College baseball is baseball that is played on the intercollegiate level at institutions of higher education. In comparison to football and basketball, college competition in the United States plays a smaller role in developing professional pl ...

for the

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

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 t ...

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

(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 usually means that the batter is out. A strikeout is a statistic recorded for both pitchers and batters, and is deno ...

. 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 operate ...

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 F ...

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 one thous ...

. 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

. 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 ga ...

of the Rookie-level

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 l ...

. 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

Class A-Advanced High-A (officially Class High-A, formerly known as Class A-Advanced, and sometimes abbreviated "A+" in writing) is the third-highest level of play in Minor League Baseball in the United States and Canada, below Triple-A and Double-A, and abov ...

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 follow ...

. 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 is the preseason in Major League Baseball (MLB), a series of practices and exhibition games preceding the start of the regular season. Spring training allows new players to try out for roster and position spots, and gives estab ...

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 of the

Class AA Double-A (officially Class AA) is the second-highest level of play in Minor League Baseball in the United States since 1946, below only Triple-A. There are currently 30 teams classified at the Double-A level, one for each team in Major League ...

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 th ...

. 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) Central division. The team is owned by Jerry Reinsdorf, and ...

. 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 is a game in which a team was not able to record a hit. Major League Baseball (MLB) officially defines a no-hitter as a completed game in which a team that batted in at least nine innings recorded no hits. A pitcher w ...

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 Andrew Jay Hinch (born May 15, 1974) is an American professional baseball coach and former player who is the manager of the Detroit Tigers of Major League Baseball (MLB). Hinch played catcher for the Oakland Athletics (–), Kansas City Royals (� ...

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, Texas. The Astros compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division, having moved to the division in 2013 after ...

. 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 (NL) Central division. Since the 2006 season, the Cardinals h ...

, 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, colloquially known as Tommy John surgery (TJS), 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 ...

, which prematurely ended his 2022 season.

Personal

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

Nashville, Tennessee Nashville is the capital city of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the seat of Davidson County. With a population of 689,447 at the 2020 U.S. census, Nashville is the most populous city in the state, 21st most-populous city in the U.S., and t ...

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 United States national baseball team players Wareham Gatemen players