Casey Mize to make Padres debut on Wednesday

Mize was charged with only two earned runs in this one, but the Rays put seven runs on the board while Mize was on the mound. After getting through the first two innings unscathed, Mize saw a sinker to Yandy Díaz land 382 feet over the right-field stands for a solo homer, putting the Padres down 1-0. The Rays would add to their lead in the fourth inning, as Mize struggled to retire anybody and saw five runs come across to score, although he was only charged with one earned run. Mize would allow one more earned run in the fifth inning before being pulled after 77 pitches, and will see his August come to an end with a 7.00 ERA and a 1.56 WHIP. He’ll look to get back on track in the final month of the season, with his next start coming on Wednesday in Cincinnati against the Reds.

Mize has been given the green light after making it through Wednesday’s bullpen session without any issues. The 29-year-old suffered a sprained right ankle during his last outing against the Twins over the weekend. He’s given up 14 runs over 18 innings across four starts since arriving in San Diego at the trade deadline.

Mize was able to play catch on back-to-back days after suffering a right ankle sprain during Saturday’s start against the Twins. The 29-year-old has been snake-bitten by injuries this season and that bad luck has apparently followed him to San Diego. The positive news is that he appears on track to take the ball against the Rays later this week, depending on how he’s feeling coming out of Wednesday’s bullpen session. There should be a definitive update on his status in the coming days.

Both runs came in the sixth. Esmerlyn Valdez led off the inning with a homer. Ray then walked Bryan Reynolds and struck out Oneil Cruz before being pulled in favor of Bradgley Rodriguez, who surrendered a go-ahead double to score the inherited runner. Ray struck out five and allowed just two hard-hit balls other than the homer. He’ll likely face the Rays on Sunday.

Mize, who was making his fourth start with the Padres after coming over from the Tigers at the deadline, was hurt slipping down the dugout steps after the second inning. He ended up being charged with four runs in 2 2/3 innings against the Twins.

Mize was first checked on while warming up for the third and was pulled from the game after giving up balls in play of 106, 107 and 108 mph to the three batters he faced that inning. Fortunately, two of those were outs, but Mize still gave up three runs in 2 2/3 innings. Mize averaged just 90.4 mph with his fastball in the third, putting him three mph below his season average.

Well, it’s definitely an improved outing from Ray, but that’s mostly because Fernando Tatis Jr. made a jumping catch to take away a grand slam from Francisco Lindor in the second. As a result, Ray collected hit first win in three starts for the Padres. He issued three more walks tonight, bringing his total to 11 in 15 innings for his new team. Those that stuck with him were rewarded, but the outing doesn’t make him look like any better of a bet for the future. He’ll start at home against the Pirates next time out.

Jeremiah Estrada, Adrian Morejon and Yuki Matsui completed the three-hitter. Mize settled for three strikeouts today. Oddly enough, the 22 splitters he threw produced zero whiffs or called strikes. However, they did generate outs all six times they were put into play. Mize improved to 5-7 with a 3.18 ERA overall. He’ll take on another familiar foe when the Twins travel to San Diego next weekend. Both his four wins and his five losses versus the Twins are the most he has against any team.

Ray’s first two starts with the Padres have seen him increase his changeup usage at the expense of his curve and sinker. It’s not working out so far, but that might be primarily because of how wild he’s been; he’s allowed six runs and walked eight over nine innings for his new team. It’s worth sticking with him for his start against the Mets next week, but he might be droppable in shallow leagues if he doesn’t show some improvement then.

Mize was effective, but not in an especially encouraging way. He generated just six whiffs, though he did get 21 called strikes for a 33 percent CSW. His velocity, which was well down in his final start for the Tigers before returning to normal on 10 days’ rest last week in his otherwise miserable Padres debut (8 ER in 3 1/3 IP versus Arizona), was back down a little tonight; his fastball was 0.7 mph lower than his season average and his slider was down 1.4 mph. He doesn’t seem like quite as good of a bet now as he did earlier in the season in Detroit, but in a nice situation in San Diego, he’s probably worth sticking with in mixed leagues. He’ll pitch in Cleveland on Sunday.