Detroit Tigers Get Excellent News on Injury Front Regarding Revamped Starting Rotation
The Detroit Tigers have already signed starting pitchers Jack Flaherty and Kenta Maeda this offseason, and now they've gotten great news on a guy they already had in the clubhouse.
Per Evan Petzold of the Detroit Free Press:
Casey Mize, the 2018 No. 1 overall pick, has recovered from elbow surgery and back surgery.
He hasn't pitched for the #Tigers since April 14, 2022.
Innings, splitter, command are topics to track in his return to the mound.
"I'm ready to go," Mize said.
When the Tigers started their last rebuild, they elected to build around young starting pitching. They drafted Mize, Matt Manning and Tarik Skubal, but none has been able to stay healthy for very long at the big league level.
The goal for 2024 is that the Tigers can compete with Maeda, Flaherty, and hopefully those three, but if someone should go out again, they'll have the internal depth needed to absorb losses.
Picked first overall out of Auburn in the 2018 draft, Mize made his debut in 2020. He's 7-13 in his young career with a 4.29 ERA but showed real promise in 2021 when he pitched to a 3.71 ERA in 30 starts.
He got hurt at the beginning of 2022.
The Tigers finished second in the American League Central in 2023 and are looking to contend for their first playoff spot since 2014.
Given that the American League Central is so mediocre at this point, it's not out of the question that Detroit could compete immediately in 2024.
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