The Detroit Tigers selected Casey Mize with the No. 1 pick in the 2018 Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft, and the Auburn right-hander was on his way.

Twenty-six minor-league starts later, including a no-hitter for the Double-A Erie SeaWolves, Mize had reached the big leagues.

But entering the 2025 season, the former Springville High School star had a 9-19 record with a 4.36 earned-run average in 61 appearances for Detroit. Between starts on April 14, 2022, and April 4, 2024, Mize did not pitch for the Tigers as he rehabilitated after elbow and back surgeries.

In 2025, Mize is on the American League pitching staff for the MLB All-Star Game, which will be played on Tuesday night.

“I’ve always known that I could do this,” Mize said, “and I’ve always believed in that. Did doubts and thoughts come into my mind that I would never get here? One hundred percent, like, yes. But I feel like I did a pretty good job of trying to flush that pretty quickly because I knew that I had so much career left ahead of me and so many things I wanted to accomplish, that the longer I let those thoughts fester in my head, the more of a detriment it would be, so I really worked to try to avoid those as much as possible.

“But did those thoughts come to my head? Yeah, they did. And I’m pretty proud of how I was able to push those aside.”

After surging down the stretch to grab a wild-card spot in the American League playoffs in 2024 to end a streak of seven losing seasons, Detroit reached the all-star break this season with MLB’s best record at 59-38.

The showing netted the Tigers’ six spots on the American League team for the MLB All-Star Game.

“I’m really proud to play for Detroit,” Mize said. “I think gritty gets affiliated with us a lot. (Detroit Lions coach) Dan Campbell probably started that, but we kind of took it over a little bit as well. It kind of embodies our city. I honestly feel like I can relate to that a little bit more because I went through some difficult times and now it’s like I get to showcase the good times with five other teammates and Frankie our batboy, so super proud of that to showcase our brand of baseball on a national scale.”

Mize brings a 9-3 record with a 3.15 ERA to the All-Star Game. In 16 starts this season, he has struck out 77 and yielded 86 hits and 22 walks in 88.2 innings. Mize’s stats were better before Saturday, when the Seattle Mariners scored six runs off him in three innings.

Tigers manager A.J. Hinch said he knew the All-Star Game announcement had “disrupted” Mize’s preparation for Saturday’s contest.

“It’s awesome,” Hinch said of Mize earning his first trip to the MLB All-Star Game. “His reaction was fun to be a part of. The pride that I know he has, not only with what he’s done, but the journey to get here, and then being rewarded with a trip to Atlanta with his best friend Tarik Skubal, his teammates that have watched him have an incredible season thus far. It’s hard in this sport sometime to get those moments and get that type of recognition.”

The MLB All-Star Game is set for 7 p.m. CDT Tuesday at Truist Park in Atlanta. FOX will televise the contest.

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