'Fighter' Casey Mize, Tigers face Logan Gilbert, Mariners

The careers of Casey Mize and Logan Gilbert have diverged since the pitchers were first-round picks in the 2018 MLB draft.

But they'll come full circle Tuesday night in Seattle when they take the mound for their respective ballclubs.

Detroit's Mize (2-6, 4.49 ERA last season) has thus far failed to live up to the hype he garnered as the No. 1 overall pick.

The right-hander, who earned the fifth and final spot in the Tigers' starting rotation this spring, is just 9-19 with a 4.36 ERA through his first four seasons. He missed half of the 2022 season and all of the 2023 campaign following elbow and back surgeries.

"He's a fighter," Tigers manager A.J. Hinch said. "He will grind. He will push. He will power through things. Everything matters to him. He had a certain intensity, kind of an edge to him this spring because it hasn't been a perfect journey for him."

Mize said he used his first healthy offseason in three years to work on a higher-velocity, split-fingered fastball and three variations of a slider.

"I went into this offseason with a plan to get better," said Mize, who had a 1.89 ERA in the Grapefruit League. "I feel like some of that's starting to pay off, obviously with the performance this spring, but also with how I earned this spot. It gives me some good confidence going into the season. I'm certainly happy with how things have gone so far, but we're just getting started."

Gilbert, who was taken by the Mariners with the 14th overall pick, has emerged into the ace of one of the best staffs in baseball -- he was an All-Star last season when he pitched a majors-leading 208 2/3 innings and allowed just 0.887 walks and hits per inning -- and earned his first Opening Day start this spring. Gilbert is 41-30 with a 3.58 ERA in his career.

He is 1-1 with a 3.77 ERA in three starts against the Tigers.

Gilbert (0-0, 1.29 ERA) didn't get a decision in Seattle's season-opening 4-2 victory against the visiting Athletics despite giving up just one run on two hits over seven innings, with no walks and eight strikeouts.

"Early in the season, I always want my best stuff," Gilbert said. "And stuff-wise, I felt like I was fine. But I wasn't throwing 100 mph or anything out there. I was getting ahead. The slider felt really good and having the splitter when I needed it. As far as execution goes, I'd say I felt like I was up there."

The Tigers won the series opener 9-6 as Riley Greene homered in a six-run first inning.

Top prospect Jackson Jobe made his first major-league start but didn't last long enough for the victory, throwing 79 pitches over four innings. He gave up three runs on three hits -- including a pair of solo homers -- with four walks and three strikeouts.

"I think he has elite stuff and he's got to use it," Hinch said of Jobe. "I think they ambushed him because he's a strike thrower and they're going to be very, very aggressive. ... They didn't care what the score was."

Randy Arozarena, Luke Raley and Cal Raleigh went deep for the Mariners.

But Seattle starter Emerson Hancock, like Jobe another former first-round pick, lasted just two-thirds of an inning.

"Emerson had a tough time getting through that first inning, but really proud of how our guys fought all the way to the end," Mariners manager Dan Wilson said. "We kept pressure on them. It was just a tough, tough first inning for us, but the guys really, really battled back and gave them all they could handle, all the way to the end."

--Field Level Media