Since the Detroit Tigers used the first selection in the 2018 MLB First-Year Player Draft on Auburn pitcher Casey Mize, the former Springville High School star had compiled a 9-19 record in 59 career starts for the big-league team entering Tuesday’s American League game against the Seattle Mariners.

In the Tigers’ 4-1 victory, Mize pitched as though he had put his injury-filled past three seasons behind him.

In working 5.2 scoreless innings in his 2025 debut, Mize yielded one hit, walked three and struck out six at T-Mobile Park in Seattle.

Right fielder Victor Robles got the Mariners’ hit as Seattle’s leadoff batter in the game. Mize also walked the third batter before retiring the next 15 Mariners.

“I just saw him use his whole repertoire and really get after it,” Tigers manager A.J. Hinch said. “When he got himself out of the first inning, where he was spraying the ball a little bit, had a little bit of a hard time getting into the game, and then fell into an incredible rhythm. He pounded the strike zone. He had the split going. He had both variations of the slider. His fastball got pretty good. And he was pretty pitch-efficient. So you throw all that together in the same game, and you get this kind of performance.

“When we got the lead, we felt like we had a bigger lead just because of the way Casey was throwing. A different part of the season, he’s probably going to cruise a little bit longer.”

Tuesday’s game marked Mize’s longest scoreless outing since April 21, when he worked six innings in a 6-1 victory over the Minnesota Twins.

Mize had only one other scoreless outing in the 2024 season. But after he worked 5.1 shutout innings in a 7-6 victory over the Los Angeles Angels on June 30, the Tigers placed him on the 60-day injured list because of a hamstring issue. He didn’t pitch again until Aug. 30. After his return, Mize had a 5.32 earned-run average in 23.2 innings in six games, and he did not pitch in any of Detroit’s seven playoff games.

The right-hander made his big-league debut on Aug. 19, 2020, after 26 minor-league starts. On his way to Detroit, Mize had an 8-3 record and 2.71 earned-run average, and his minor-league work included a no-hitter for the Erie SeaWolves in his Double-A debut on April 29, 2019.

But between starts on April 14, 2022, and April 4, 2024, Mize did not pitch for the Tigers. In June 2022, Mize had elbow surgery and, shortly after that, back surgery.

Around his injury last year, Mize had a 2-6 record with a 4.49 ERA in 22 games, with 20 starts. In 102.1 innings, he struck out 78 while yielding 121 hits and 29 walks.

The splitter was the pitch that made Mize a highly valued prospect, and Hinch noted the pitcher’s use of it on Tuesday night. Mize said his injuries had affected his use of the splitter.

“When I was dealing with my back stuff, it kind of changed the way that I moved,” Mize said after Tuesday’s victory. “I had some nerve pain that was shooting down my left leg. I couldn’t brace very well. …

“My body was dictating the way that I moved, which then is going to dictate the way the ball comes out of your hand.”

Mize arrived at spring training on the roster bubble. But in 19 innings over six Grapefruit League games, Mize posted a 1.89 ERA with 25 strikeouts.

Mark Inabinett is a sports reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on X at @AMarkG1.