00:00Detroit Tigers fans, Tuesday night's game in Atlanta brought another uneasy moment for a pitching staff that can't seem to
00:07catch a break, Casey Mize's outing was cut short, and the way it unfolded left everyone holding their breath, here's
00:13exactly what happened, pitch by pitch, and what it means moving forward, Casey Mize's start came to an early end
00:19at Truist Park, as right groin tightness forced the Detroit Tigers right-hander out in the third inning of a
00:245-2 loss to the Atlanta Braves, the injury added another concern for a Tigers pitching staff.
00:30already dealing with multiple absences this season, with seven pitchers currently on the injured list. In the bottom of the
00:36second, Mize earned his third strikeout of the night with a 94-2 MBPH four-seamer down and in to
00:45Dominic Smith. After the delivery, Mize walked a bit awkwardly around the edge of the mound. The strike call was
00:52confirmed following an ABS challenge by Smith, which gave Mize a moment to stretch before he continued pitching.
00:57It wasn't like a one-pitch, like grab thing, it was kind of like a gradual tightening up a little
01:02bit, so I made it through that inning, Mize said. Then we did some tests on it in between innings,
01:07and felt like good enough to go back out there, but it kind of just never really went away.
01:11In the bottom of the third inning, Mize had already surrendered an RBI double to Ronald Acuna Jr., giving the
01:18Braves a 1-0 lead. Moments later, Drake Baldwin stepped in and made weak contact on an 86-1 MPH
01:26splitter, sending a slow chopper up the first baseline, Mize quickly came off the mound to field it and throw
01:32to first.
01:33While the play itself didn't immediately signal anything unusual, Mize's reaction did. The right-hander looked to be in discomfort
01:40after the throw, prompting a visit from the Tigers' staff.
01:43It didn't necessarily get worse, it just knew this is not feeling great, Mize said, so they could see that
01:49with my body language, so they came out and visited, and we decided to leave the game.
01:53Following a brief conversation on the mound, Detroit made the decision to remove Mize from the game. With what was
02:01later diagnosed as right groin tightness, left-hander Brant Herter was called in from the bullpen.
02:06He came up pretty tentative and he wanted to throw a pitch, but we're not going to mess with that
02:11in April, manager AJ Hinch said.
02:14And just given how he was describing how he was feeling, we took him out of the game, he'll get
02:19checked out, I have no idea the severity or anything like that, yet.
02:23Herter allowed a sacrifice fly, to center field that extended Atlanta's lead to 2-0, Mize finished with two runs
02:30allowed, on three hits over two and one-third innings, striking out three on 34 pitches.
02:35He entered the night with a 2.90 ERA, after his previous outing went six innings with seven strikeouts, three
02:43hits and one run allowed.
02:44The right-hander is scheduled for additional testing, and the Tigers are expected to have more clarity in the coming
02:50days.
02:51I've had some hamstring issues and never a groin, you know, so that's new for me, but we'll get some
02:55tests tomorrow and see what we're looking at, Mize said.
02:58I feel pretty good about things, but we'll know more tomorrow, after we get a picture taken, but just the
03:04test we've done so far seem pretty positive, and tomorrow, we'll have, literally, a much clearer picture on what we're
03:12looking at.
03:13Mize has a history of left hamstring issues, including a two-month stint on the 60-day injured list in
03:192024, and a mild strain in May 2025, so now the waiting game begins.
03:24With the rotation already stretched thin, how much can this team withstand if Mize misses any significant time, and for
03:31a pitcher with a history of leg troubles but never a groin issue, does this change the way you view
03:36his long-term durability?
03:38Let me know your thoughts, just how concerned are you after watching him walk off that mound?
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