Opportunity to save Tigers' season 'as good as it gets' for Mize

DETROIT -- The Tigers are ready.

They’ve been ready, tensed and coiled and prepared to pounce, waiting for the slightest nudge to unleash on the postseason what Detroit faithful witnessed during the first half of the regular season.

The Tigers have a term for it: One click away.

All it takes is just one bounce, one hit or one flashy play and they’re off to the races again.

“I think our time is coming, especially in big situations,” Spencer Torkelson said. “I think whatever that click is, we don't know. But we're going to find it, and we're very close.”

We saw something click in the bottom of the ninth during the Tigers’ 8-4 loss on Tuesday night in Game 3 of the AL Division Series, but it wasn’t enough, and Detroit is running out of chances to seize the moment. The Mariners own a 2-1 lead in the best-of-five series, and when the Tigers turn to starter Casey Mize on Wednesday afternoon, they’re looking to him to save their season.

After injuries kept Mize off the 2024 postseason roster, he was one of the few current Tigers with no playoff experience. He got his feet wet Oct. 1 in the form of a three-inning start against Cleveland in Game 2 of the AL Wild Card Series, during which he allowed only a solo homer.

• Mariners-Tigers ALDS Game 4 FAQ

Mize has an opportunity to set the tone for the game and make his mark after he was forced to watch things play out from the sidelines last season. If he clicks, he has a chance to be a hero and send the boys back to Seattle for a winner-take-all Game 5 showdown on Friday.

Come out flat, and it’s better luck next year.

“I play to win. That's what I care about the most,” Mize said. “I love to prepare and compete and hang out with these guys and travel and do all these things, but winning is what I like to do the most.

“So if there's an opportunity to … save the season, that's about as good as it gets for me, you know?”

Mize has seen the Mariners twice in 2025, with very different results. His season debut on April 1 was a 5 2/3-inning scoreless affair during which he fanned six and allowed just one hit -- to the first batter he faced. He wasn’t as fortunate later in the season at Comerica Park, where he got the hook after allowing six runs across just three innings in a 15-7 loss on July 12.

Mize will be working on extra rest this time around, bumped back a day after manager A.J. Hinch opted to throw Jack Flaherty in Game 3. Detroit will likely piggyback hybrid arm Troy Melton off Mize for additional depth. Defending AL Cy Young Award winner Tarik Skubal is slated for the potential Game 5, but the Tigers have to get there first, and the 1-2 punch of Mize and Melton figures to give them their best shot at sending the series back to Skubal’s old stomping grounds.

Hinch has been clear that Melton is a starter in the long term, but the rookie has also worked in relief as needed. Once the Tigers’ No. 12 prospect, Melton made his Major League debut on July 23 and had 16 appearances (four starts) in the regular season, while also playing a crucial role down the stretch.

After a rough relief outing (four runs in one-third of an inning) in Cleveland late in Game 2 of the Wild Card Series, Melton redeemed himself in Seattle with a Game 1 start in the ALDS during which he allowed just one run, a Julio Rodríguez homer, and fanned four across four innings.

For Mize, “being called upon to compete and be your best in times of need, it's like every athlete's dream.”

Let’s not forget that this is the same team that brought the city alive last September. The Gritty Tigs of 2024 were eight games under .500 (55-63) on Aug. 10 when FanGraphs predicted they had just a 0.2% chance to make the postseason, and look how that turned out.

The only question now is: Will they click in time?