It wasn’t the potentially final game of the season that Detroit Tigers pitcher Casey Mizee had envisioned.
Mize gave up six runs and five hits in 4 2/3 innings Wednesday night against the Minnesota Twins, finishing his rookie campaign with a 6.99 ERA.
However, the 1st overall pick in 2018 isn’t letting it get to him.
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“I’m not lost,” Mize said. “I feel like I have the stuff to be here. It’s just execution, command, sequencing and all of that’s tough to do. I’m struggling with that right now. Pretty bad timing on my part.”
“I go back and watch the games after each start and I see what you guys see on TV,” Mize said. “I look at the strike zone and what I think is down in the zone is not. I’m still learning what the strike zone looks like up here.
“My whole perception of what down is is completely different. I can still work down a little more.”
There still remains the chance that Mize could get one more crack at the mound this season, depending on whether or not the Tiger will face the St. Louis Cardinals in a double header.
“I definitely want to log more innings and get as much game time as possible,” he said. “I want to gain that experience and make up for what happened tonight.”
“Through all these struggles, I’m going to come out of it the most motivated I’ve ever been,” Mize said. “It’s going to be a tough off-season, hearing what you guys have to write, but all these struggles are going to make me a lot better. It’s going to drive me to be great.
“Every day when I’m working out, playing catch or whatever, this time is going to be in the back of my mind.”
– – Quotes via Chris McCoskey of The Detroit News Link – –