LAKELAND, Fla. -- Casey Mize grew up as a Yankees fan in Alabama, with Derek Jeter being his favorite player. So simply having a chance to pitch against the Bronx Bombers on Thursday was a big deal.

Then he got the starting assignment, pitching opposite another former top overall MLB Draft pick, Gerrit Cole.

“Growing up, I was a Yankees fan, I’ll admit, so that was pretty cool for me,” Mize said. “And then, pitching against arguably the best pitcher in the game was really neat for me. I was a little bit nervous, excited, anxious -- all of the above.

“But I just wanted to go compete, and I did that today, so it was awesome.”

On a hot and breezy day on which the Tigers and Yankees combined for 11 home runs -- including four Detroit drives off Cole in a 15-11 win -- Mize had the best pitching performance of the afternoon. Facing a Yankees lineup that included four Major League regulars and a former top prospect, Mize faced the minimum over two hitless innings.

With winds gusting out, Mize became a ground-ball pitcher, inducing a trio of groundouts, including a second-inning double play to erase a leadoff walk. His back-to-back first-inning strikeouts came against two big-swinging big leaguers, using a cutter to fan Gio Urshela on a check swing before spotting a slider for a called third strike on Miguel Andújar.

It was a pragmatic approach to a game in which Mize was theoretically working on pitches. But he acknowledges there’s more to this game, this camp, than simply getting his work in.

“It’s different, because now I really want to compete and impress, while realizing what matters is the developmental piece," Mize said. "I want to compete and do well even moreso than last year, because I know I’m a little bit closer, so I really want to make a good impression.

“So it’s kind of a weird dynamic: Am I willing to sacrifice a little bit of what happens on the field for what I’m feeling out of my hand or mixing in a few splits or a few breaking balls when I haven’t thrown any that day? It’s a fine line of competing and trying to get better from a developmental standpoint.”

Mize's impression has been made.

“He’s in control out there,” manager Ron Gardenhire said. “He knows how to read a hitter. He has that great feel for what he thinks they’re looking for. They can’t just sit on fastballs. He just knows what he’s doing.”

Faedo, Manning struggle
Mize wasn’t the only Tigers pitching prospect balancing season prep work with trying to make an impression on Thursday. He found the balance better than Double-A Erie teammates Alex Faedo and Matt Manning, both of whom battled through a rough inning.

Faedo used his slider for back-to-back strikeouts after a leadoff double in the third, but a 10-pitch battle with Mike Tauchman ended in a two-out walk that sent Faedo’s pitch count -- and the inning -- spiraling. A walk to Urshela loaded the bases for Andújar, who barreled a fastball for a two-run double off the left-field fence.

Faedo gave up two runs on two hits, with two walks and two strikeouts, in two-thirds of an inning.

“I think he’s got great stuff. I think he’s funky,” Gardenhire said. “I just think, right now, he’s kind of overthrowing everything, trying to rise to the top and pitch 96-97 [mph] when you can probably pitch very effectively at 94 with his stuff. And I think once he gets relaxed, he’ll be fine.”

Two innings later, Manning entered and hit 100 mph on the Joker Marchant Stadium radar gun, but he then gave up a four-run fifth inning, punctuated by Kyle Higashioka’s second home run of the day. Manning recovered for a perfect sixth inning, including a strikeout of Urshela.

“They want to get themselves ready for a season, whether it be [at] Triple-A or the big leagues,” Gardenhire said. “But also, when they get on a mound, they want to make sure that you take notice that they believe they’re ready right now. And we’ve got about four of those guys that I think are trying to make the same statement.”

Quick hits
• Fellow former first-round pick Beau Burrows continues to work on his mechanics. He hasn’t pitched in a game since yielding five runs on four hits in two-thirds of an inning Feb. 22. He’ll throw a bullpen session Saturday and could return to game action next week.

• Though Ivan Nova already pitched earlier this week, he’ll start on short rest Saturday when the Tigers face the Twins in the Dominican capital of Santo Domingo. Nova, who was born and raised in the Dominican Republic, will throw a couple innings.

Up next
Spencer Turnbull tries to continue his scoreless spring when he takes the mound Friday for his third Grapefruit League outing as the Tigers host the Phillies for a 1:05 p.m. ET game at Joker Marchant Stadium. Turnbull has seven strikeouts in five innings of one-hit ball this spring. Fans can listen to the game on AM 1270 in Detroit or using Gameday Audio on MLB.com.