![\"Casey](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/SUT-L-padres-0909-001.jpg\")
Casey Mize of the San Diego Padres pitches against the Washington Nationals at Petco Park on September 8, 2026 in San Diego, CA. (K.C. Alfred \/ The San Diego Union-Tribune)<\/p>\nThe Padres acquired Casey Mize from the Detroit Tigers at the trade deadline with hopes that the right-handed starting pitcher would help their playoff push.<\/p>\n
The Tigers selected Mize with the No. 1 overall pick in the 2018 MLB Draft. He made his major league debut in 2020 and emerged as a full-time starter in 2021, making 30 starts before injuries derailed the next two seasons. Mize underwent Tommy John surgery and back surgery before returning to the mound in 2024. His comeback season was interrupted by a hamstring injury, and he struggled with inconsistency.<\/p>\n
Mize rebounded in\u00a02025, earning his\u00a0first All-Star\u00a0selection. He produced\u00a0a 2.70 ERA\u00a0in 16 starts\u00a0for Detroit this season. His\u00a0transition to San\u00a0Diego has been\u00a0bumpier, however, as\u00a0he has a\u00a06.34 ERA through\u00a0seven starts with\u00a0the Padres. He\u00a0rolled his ankle\u00a0during his fourth\u00a0start but did\u00a0not miss a\u00a0turn in the\u00a0rotation.<\/p>\n
An Alabama native, Mize and his wife welcomed their first child, a daughter, last October.<\/p>\n
This interview has been lightly edited for length and clarity.<\/p>\n
How did you get your start in baseball and when did you know you could really pitch?<\/p>\n
A:\u00a0I started playing baseball when I was 4 or 5 years old. My brother played; he\u2019s 4 1\/2 years older than me, so I just wanted to do whatever he did. I loved baseball because he did. I played shortstop and I pitched growing up. I think junior year in high school, my travel baseball coach said, \u201cHey man, pitching is your future. Shortstop is not.\u201d That made me sad at first because I was a huge Derek Jeter fan. I wanted to be Derek Jeter. But I said \u201cOK\u201d and started focusing on pitching. I think he made the right call.<\/p>\n
I read that when you were about 11 or 12, your mom wanted to get you an Xbox or a PlayStation and you said, \u201cNope, it\u2019s going to take up too much of my time.\u201d Is that true?<\/p>\n
A:\u00a0Yeah. I knew that I would love it and a lot of my time would go towards that, and I wanted my time to go towards baseball. So I was like, \u201cPlease don\u2019t do that. I know I\u2019ll get addicted to this just like all my other friends are.\u201d \u2026 I enjoy playing video games. Just during that time, I said, \u201cI think it\u2019s more important for me to practice baseball.\u201d<\/p>\n
It speaks to how disciplined you were even as a young kid.<\/p>\n
A:\u00a0Yeah, probably too much.\u00a0\u00a0I probably should have played some video games and been OK with that. But I loved baseball and I wanted to play baseball all the time.<\/p>\n
You went undrafted out of high school, but you were the No. 1 pick coming out of college. What changed at Auburn?<\/p>\n
A:\u00a0Oh, a lot. I got a lot stronger. I put on about 45 pounds, like 15 pounds a year. I walked into college super skinny. I had a lot of area to grow in the weight room. Started throwing harder. Had some great coaches there. Butch Thompson was my head coach. He\u2019s a huge pitching guy. He had a huge impact on my career. Played with some great teammates, great players there, and I got better every single year and just took off. \u2026 After my freshman year, I didn\u2019t really know if I was going to be a starter or be a reliever. Sophomore year is really when I took off and I realized, \u201cOK, I really see my dream being (possible) of being a major league player, and being a quality one at that.\u201d<\/p>\n
You played with Gavin Sheets in the Cape Cod League. What was young Gavin like?\u00a0<\/p>\n
A:\u00a0The same. He looks the same, swings the same, all of it\u2019s the same. He was great. He was the only guy I knew when I got (to the Padres). Like the only person I\u2019d met prior to coming here. It was good to see him.<\/p>\n
Casey Mize of the San Diego Padres pitches against the Washington Nationals at Petco Park on September 8, 2026 in San Diego, CA. (K.C. Alfred \/ The San Diego Union-Tribune)<\/p>\n
Do you still eat a banana on your way in from your bullpen before every start?<\/p>\n
A:\u00a0I eat them during the start now.<\/p>\n
How long has that been your thing?<\/p>\n
A:\u00a0In college, I think I started doing that. Now I eat a couple of bananas during the game.\u00a0\u00a0It helps for anti-cramping and all that stuff. And it\u2019s a comfort thing for me. It\u2019s just something I\u2019ve done. I eat honey (packets) now as well.<\/p>\n
At Auburn, you would clean the clubhouse, distribute luggage on road trips and choose younger players as your throwing partners. Who instilled that in you?<\/p>\n
A:\u00a0Well, my parents at first. They were big on discipline and doing your part around the house and on the field or in the dugout or clubhouse. And when I got in college, my head coach reinforced that. \u201cSweep the sheds\u201d was something he was big on, and lead from the front.<\/p>\n
Your dad is a police sergeant, correct?<\/p>\n
A:\u00a0He retired, and now he\u2019s the police chief in my town I grew up in.<\/p>\n
Did that shape you in any way growing up?<\/p>\n
A:\u00a0Definitely. My grandfather was a police officer. My dad, and now my brother is as well. It\u2019s just in our family. It\u2019s a family of service and discipline. I think it definitely shaped me. We were looked after and very disciplined, and Dad ran a tight ship. I\u2019m thankful for it. It was great.<\/p>\n
Did you know Detroit was going to take you with the No. 1 overall pick?<\/p>\n
A:\u00a0So I did all my scouting meetings with all 30 teams in the fall. I told my agent and my head coach, \u201cHey, I don\u2019t want to do anything in the spring. When the spring comes, I want to just focus on our team.\u201d Then in about May, I get a call. \u201cHey, we need to have a couple more meetings.\u201d And I said, \u201cNo, we\u2019re done.\u201d They\u2019re like, \u201cIt\u2019s the Tigers and the Giants. They pick one and two.\u201d And I was like, \u201cOh, OK. I should probably take those meetings.\u201d At that point, I had a pretty good idea that I was going to go really high in the draft. Then we ended up knowing the night before the draft that the Tigers were going to take me.<\/p>\n
What were your emotions when it happened?<\/p>\n
A: It was really relief and finally, like, an acceptance. I knew the night before, but it\u2019s like, I don\u2019t know. We\u2019ll see when my name gets called. I\u2019ve heard too many horror stories of things changing. So it was just relief and final acceptance of, \u201cHey, this is happening and this is here.\u201d It\u2019s pretty unbelievable. I wanted to be a big leaguer and I wanted to be a pro player, and I thought that was all possible. Never did I think I was going to be the first overall pick. That never was a goal of mine or ever came up. It was a pretty cool moment that I got to share with my family and friends, and my whole team and staff was there as well.<\/p>\n
You spent six seasons with the Tigers. What does that organization mean to you?<\/p>\n
A: It means a lot. I came into the organization (when) obviously, we weren\u2019t winning much. That\u2019s how they got a couple No. 1 overall picks. So I\u2019ve seen multiple phases of that organization and was proud to be a small part of getting them back to the postseason for a couple years and back to winning baseball. To see that whole process and be there was special for me. I wish we would have won every year, but that wasn\u2019t the case. But at least I have experience of what it\u2019s like to play non-meaningful baseball at times, and meaningful baseball. Now I only want to play meaningful baseball because it\u2019s way more fun. But it\u2019s a special place. I have a lot of good things to say and so many people I care about there, and I know (they) care about me. I certainly enjoyed my time there.<\/p>\n
You lost two seasons to Tommy John surgery and back surgery. What was that period like?<\/p>\n
A:\u00a0It was really difficult. \u2026 When you can\u2019t play the game you love for two years and be a part of a team, it was frustrating and it was difficult. It was probably the toughest time in my career by far. But I knew when I came back, I wanted to be the best player I could be. Then \u201824 didn\u2019t go as planned. I missed a couple months with a hamstring injury and I just didn\u2019t play my best, but I did some good things I knew I could build on. I went into \u201825 really motivated to come out on the other end of that three-year period, which was difficult on me, and start to provide some value and do my part and play at the level that I knew I was capable.<\/p>\n
![\"Detroit](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/AP26186793634658.jpg\")
Detroit Tigers starting pitcher Casey Mize throws during the first inning of a baseball game against the Texas Rangers, Sunday, July 5, 2026, in Arlington, Texas. (AP Photo\/LM Otero)<\/p>\n
Did those years change your perspective in any way?<\/p>\n
A: One hundred percent, yes. I look back on it and in a way, I\u2019m thankful for it. I kind of feel more relatable to some of the guys, whereas I honestly had never been through a ton of adversity in my career throughout high school, college, minor leagues, whatever, up until that point. I just viewed it as, \u201cHey, this is what I do, and I just keep moving forward.\u201d And when all that gets stopped for a bit, you (understand) that this is not going to be here for me every day. I can\u2019t be a part of a team. This is a real struggle for me. It became more relatable for me to a lot of my teammates who had been through difficult times and been through injuries and been through some failure throughout their careers. I was happy that I learned that at such a young age versus later in my career. It gave me perspective over the last three years that I think has been really beneficial for me as a player and as a teammate.<\/p>\n
You made the All-Star Game last year and put together a good season with Detroit this year. How validating is that?<\/p>\n
A: Certainly validating. This is what I expected \u2014 this level of performance \u2014 the second I got in the big leagues, and it didn\u2019t go that way. But to have it now, after years of struggle and injury, it\u2019s good to have it.\u00a0\u00a0I don\u2019t take it for granted. I think I\u2019m more thankful for it now than I maybe would have been in another scenario. It feels good to be able to provide value and put together some quality years in a row. Making the All-Star team was super special for me and my family, and it was in Atlanta, so everybody just popped over from Alabama. It was great. Just to be able to play at the level that I thought I could play at was pretty cool.<\/p>\n
It can be easy to overlook how difficult it is to join a new team and immediately be thrust into a playoff race three-quarters of the way through the season. Why do you think your outings haven\u2019t been quite as strong as they were before the trade deadline?<\/p>\n
A:\u00a0There\u2019s been a multitude of reasons. It was kind of a shock to the system coming here. Not saying that was bad. I was shocked (with) very positive energy and super excited to get here and play in this stadium in front of these fans. I played here before and I loved it. I love everything about here except for my performance so far, honestly. That\u2019s been the negative. I know that\u2019s why I was brought here, is to perform. So that\u2019s been frustrating for sure. I\u2019ve had a couple good games, but outside of that, I\u2019ve had four that I wasn\u2019t pleased with. Coming from Detroit, it was the only place I\u2019ve ever known. You come here and it\u2019s brand new. It\u2019s my first new organization. It was different to try to learn these guys and see how they go about things. But everybody\u2019s been awesome. Everybody\u2019s been super accepting and helping me along, which has been great. The guys have been awesome and the staff has been great, trying to make that transition easier. And then I roll my ankle in the dugout, and that was frustrating. So it\u2019s kind of been this choppy experience so far performance-wise, which I\u2019m frustrated about because I know I\u2019m capable of much more, and I know that I was brought here to perform at a much higher level. I look forward to finishing strong and obviously making the second month better than the first.<\/p>\n
You and Tarik Skubal were roommates, debuted a day apart, and were both traded at the deadline. What\u2019s your relationship like and do you guys keep in touch?<\/p>\n
A:\u00a0We\u2019re really close. We were drafted in \u201918 together. We\u2019ve played together in the minor leagues and in the big leagues. We\u2019ve had a ton of success together, a ton of failure. We\u2019ve gone through injuries together. I\u2019ve watched him blossom into the best pitcher in baseball, which has been amazing. He led our team in Detroit to the playoffs back-to-back years, and now he\u2019s with the Dodgers and he\u2019s doing his thing there. So, super proud of him. \u2026 We\u2019re still really close. We talk a lot. Our families are close. Definitely care about him a lot.<\/p>\n
There\u2019s been some controversy over the espresso machine he bought and took with him when he was traded. You were part of that in Detroit. How would you rate your barista skills?<\/p>\n
A: I\u2019m gonna have my boy Skubes\u2019 back here for a second, because in spring training I bought a little $200 machine because we didn\u2019t like some of our coffee options in spring. We needed some espresso. And he said, \u201cI\u2019m gonna get us a really nice one in Detroit.\u201d It took a while for it to ship and get in. He had just gotten it dialed in, I think maybe a month before the trade deadline. And this machine is like $10,000. It\u2019s a very expensive machine. He had just got it the way he wanted. So he was like, \u201cYeah, sorry, I\u2019m gonna take it with me.\u201d Which I totally understand. It\u2019s kind of blown up a little bit. I understand he\u2019s good for it. He probably could have bought another one. But he likes his coffee a certain way, and he finally got it the way he wanted, so he wanted to keep it. His barista skills are better than mine, I would say. But I definitely could run the machine. I finally figured it out. So thanks, Skube, for getting that machine for us. And I understand you taking it with you. It\u2019s OK by me.<\/p>\n
What\u2019s your coffee order?<\/p>\n
A:\u00a0I get a hot Americano in the morning with a little bit of honey on the side that I add. I like a cortado in the afternoon.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The Padres acquired Casey Mize from the Detroit Tigers at the trade deadline with hopes that the right-handed…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":459605,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[28],"tags":[138591,74,76,75,2611,18471],"class_list":["post-459604","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-san-diego","tag-casey-mize","tag-san-diego","tag-san-diego-headlines","tag-san-diego-news","tag-san-diego-padres","tag-tarik-skubal"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/459604","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=459604"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/459604\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/459605"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=459604"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=459604"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=459604"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}