SPRINGVILLE, Ala. – In the middle of the Deep South, past a bunch of Baptist churches and a sign advertising land for cash, there is a gravel road that leads to the spot where Jason Mize was knocked on his back.
It is here, up a steep, winding hill in the forest, that Jason realized he couldn’t do it anymore.
His youngest son threw the baseball too fast.
It is recalled as the funniest family story of Auburn’s phenom pitcher, Casey Mize, whom everybody thinks the Detroit Tigers will take with the No. 1 pick in June's MLB draft, and the story is prefaced by his mother, Rhonda: “It takes a lot to knock Jay down,” she says.