St. Louis, Mo. – AJ Hinch was asked before the game if he thought his starting pitcher Casey Mize would be ready to hit, since, you know, he never has. Not even at Auburn.
“Well,” Hinch said with a wry grin, “he will go up to bat. I don’t know how much we’ll let him hit.”
Turns out, he did some damage without swinging the bat.
Mize’s first-ever plate appearance came with the bases loaded in the second inning and he drew a four-pitch walk from Cardinals right-hander Jack Flaherty. Mize flipped the bat toward the dugout and when he got to first base, he drew an imaginary bow and shot the arrow, like he’s watched his hitters to all year.