Tigers' Kerry Carpenter: Swats key homer in Game 1 win
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Carpenter went 1-for-5 with a two-run home run in Saturday's extra-innings win over the Mariners in Game 1 of the American League Division Series.
Carpenter was the one to break through against Seattle starter George Kirby with a two-run shot in the fifth inning, continuing his career mastery over Kirby (4-for-8 with four homers coming into the night). The 28-year-old Carpenter has hit safely in all four postseason games so far.
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Tigers' Kerry Carpenter: Belts 26th home run Tuesday
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Carpenter appeared as a pinch hitter and went 1-for-1 with a solo home run in Tuesday's 7-5, 10-inning loss to the Guardians.
Carpenter didn't get the start with Cleveland sending lefty Joey Cantillo to the mound, but the former still managed to have an impact. Appearing as a pinch hitter in the bottom of the ninth inning, the Detroit outfielder went deep to tie the game at 3-3 and force extra innings. Carpenter has been in a nice power groove recently with four long balls in his last 10 games, and he's already set a new career high with 26 home runs this season.
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Tigers' Kerry Carpenter: Homers off bench Wednesday
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Carpenter went 1-for-2 with a two-run home run in Wednesday's 11-1 win over the Yankees.
Carpenter began the game on the bench with New York starting lefty Carlos Rodon, but the former entered the game in the seventh inning and made his mark late. The Detroit outfielder has gone deep twice in his last five games, and he's up to 24 home runs for the season. That's a new career high for Carpenter, and he's five RBI from tying his career high in that category, which is 64.
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Tigers' Kerry Carpenter: Mashes 22nd homer
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Carpenter went 1-for-3 with a solo home run and two walks Saturday in an 8-5 win against Minnesota.
Carpenter smacked the only long ball of the contest, going deep to right-center field in the third inning. It was the outfielder's 22nd homer of the season, which has already established a career-high mark. Carpenter had an IL stint due to a hamstring injury in July that cost him nearly a month of action, so his home-run total has come in just 96 contests. On the campaign, his 14.68 HR/AB ranks 15th among MLB players with at least 100 plate appearances.
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Tigers' Kerry Carpenter: Tallies two hits, scores in win
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Carpenter went 2-for-4 with a run scored in Wednesday's 1-0 win over the White Sox.
The 27-year-old struck out in his other two at-bats, but he managed to score the game's only run in the top of the sixth inning on a Wenceel Perez sac fly after starting the frame with a single. Carpenter has been hot lately, as he's now batting .294 this month with four home runs and 10 RBI in 12 games. The outfielder continues to do most of his damage against righties, posting an .865 OPS in those matchups, though he did record one of his two hits Wednesday against Chicago southpaw Martin Perez.
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Tigers' Kerry Carpenter: Powers offense again Sunday
Rotowire
Carpenter went 2-for-4 with a double, a home run, two total runs scored and four RBI in Sunday's 9-5 win over the Angels.
Carpenter has been on a tear in August, as he's batting .320 with four home runs and 10 RBI across nine games this month. Overall, the slugging outfielder is batting .269 with an .843 OPS and 21 long balls in 90 games this season. Carpenter should be able to keep posting big stat lines batting in the heart of a potent Detroit lineup, particularly against right-handed pitching.
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Tigers' Kerry Carpenter: Stays hot Tuesday
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Carpenter went 2-for-4 with a double and an RBI in Tuesday's 6-3 loss to the Twins.
Carpenter's RBI double in the third inning was a bit of good fortune, as Minnesota center fielder Austin Martin made a sliding attempt on the sinking line drive but had the ball glance off his glove. Instead of an error, it went down as Carpenter's 14th double of the season, and he now has six multi-hit performances over his last 10 games. During that span, the 27-year-old outfielder has a robust 1.630 OPS to go along with five home runs and 10 RBI.
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Tigers' Kerry Carpenter: Pops first home run since return
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Carpenter went 2-for-3 with a walk, a home run and three RBI in Wednesday's 7-2 win over the Diamondbacks.
After missing about a month of action due to a hamstring strain, Carpenter returned Sunday and popped his first home run in his third game back Wednesday. For the season, the 27-year-old now has 17 long balls, and he was heating up before getting hurt with three homers in his last five games leading into his IL stint. Carpenter still sits frequently against southpaws, but he remains a dangerous hitter when facing righties, posting an .834 OPS in those matchups this year.
The Tigers reinstated Carpenter (hamstring) from the 10-day injured list Sunday. He'll start in right field and bat third in the Tigers' series finale with the Blue Jays.
Infielder Trey Sweeney was optioned to Triple-A Toledo to make room on the 26-man active roster for Carpenter, who has been on the shelf since June 29 due to a right hamstring strain. Between the corner-outfield and designated-hitter spots, Carpenter should be a regular presence in the Detroit lineup against right-handed pitching.
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Tigers' Kerry Carpenter: Plays field in second rehab game
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Carpenter (hamstring) started in right field and went 0-for-3 with a walk and a strikeout in his second rehab game with Triple-A Toledo on Wednesday.
Carpenter kicked off his rehab stint Tuesday by serving as the DH before taking the field the next night, playing seven innings in right before departing for a pinch hitter. Carpenter is expected to remain on assignment through the weekend, and the team will likely want to see him go a full nine innings in a corner outfield spot before he's activated. The 27-year-old was having another productive season for the Tigers before getting hurt in late June, posting a .779 OPS and 16 home runs through 78 games.
Carpenter (hamstring) has resumed hitting and defensive drills and is participating in a running progression, Evan Woodbery of MLive.com reported Friday.
Carpenter became eligible to return from the 10-day injured list Friday, but based on his progression, he likely won't be back until after the All-Star break. The 27-year-old could be good to go immediately after the pause. Prior to suffering a strained right hamstring, Carpenter slashed .257/.285/.494 over 277 plate appearances.
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Tigers' Kerry Carpenter: Exits Sunday's game with injury
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Carpenter was removed in the fifth inning of Sunday's game against the Twins due to a right hamstring injury, Chris McCosky of The Detroit News reports. He went 2-for-3 with a solo home run and an RBI triple prior to exiting the game.
Carpenter appeared to tweak his hamstring while running out of the batter's box on his fifth-inning triple, resulting in the Tigers lifting him from the contest for a pinch runner. The Tigers should have an update on Carpenter's injury status during or shortly after Sunday's game once he undergoes further testing.
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Tigers' Kerry Carpenter: Hits 15th home run
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Carpenter went 2-for-4 with a solo home run in Saturday's 10-5 win over the Twins.
Carpenter was one of four Detroit players to go deep, launching his 15th home run of the season in the third inning against Bailey Ober. Carpenter has recorded 13 of his long balls against righties while compiling a .780 OPS, compared to just a .600 OPS against southpaws. Due to his splits, the lefty slugger will likely sit often in same-handed matchups, but he's a strong fantasy option when a righty is on the mound.
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Tigers' Kerry Carpenter: Starting against lefty
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Carpenter is starting in right field and batting fifth in Thursday's game against the Orioles.
Carpenter often hits the bench against lefties, but southpaw Keegan Akin is serving as an opener for Baltimore and only expected to cover an inning or two. When he departs, righty Dean Kremer is expected to be the bulk pitcher, and Carpenter has an .826 OPS against righties compared to a .594 mark versus lefties this season.
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Tigers' Kerry Carpenter: Tallies three hits in win
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Carpenter went 3-for-4 with two doubles and a run scored in Sunday's 4-0 win over the Cubs.
After being scratched from Wednesday's lineup due to hamstring tightness, Carpenter has managed to play the last four days, with Sunday's effort his most productive performance during the stretch. The outfielder has been a reliable fantasy contributor all season with a .274 batting average, .808 OPS, 13 home runs, 27 RBI and 36 runs scored across 62 games. Carpenter could post career-high stats in a number of categories this year if he stays healthy the rest of the way.
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Tigers' Kerry Carpenter: Back in lineup Thursday
Rotowire
Carpenter (hamstring) will start at designated hitter and bat third in Thursday's game versus the White Sox.
Carpenter was scratched from the lineup Wednesday with a right hamstring issue that had been bothering him for a few days. He appeared in the Tigers' 5-4 win as a pinch hitter, however, and the Tigers feel comfortable enough with his health to have him handle a non-defensive role in Thursday's series finale.
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Tigers' Kerry Carpenter: Scratched from Wednesday's lineup
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Carpenter was scratched from the Tigers' lineup against the White Sox on Wednesday due to right hamstring tightness.
It's unclear when Carpenter tweaked his hamstring, but it's severe enough for the 27-year-old to be taken out of the starting lineup Wednesday. The outfielder will be available to pinch hit, per Chris McCosky of The Detroit News. Wenceel Perez will start in right field and bat fifth.
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Tigers' Kerry Carpenter: Crushes three home runs Monday
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Carpenter went 3-for-5 with three home runs and five RBI in Monday's 13-1 win over the White Sox.
Carpenter was far from the only Detroit player to have a big night, though he still stole the show. The outfielder produced his second multi-homer game of the season and his first career game with three long balls. Carpenter had been slumping a bit, as he came into the contest with no home runs and a .188 batting average over his previous nine games, but he quickly put that behind him with the huge effort. Carpenter now has 13 homers for the year, and he's starting to close in on his career best of 20, which he recorded back in 2023.
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Tigers' Kerry Carpenter: Sitting against another lefty
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Carpenter is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Guardians.
Carpenter has a .176/.171/.382 slash line over 35 plate appearances against left-handed pitching this season, so the Tigers will limit his exposure to southpaws now that the roster is beginning to get healthier. Matt Vierling returned from the IL on Friday, while Parker Meadows (arm) and Wenceel Perez (back) won't be far behind him. With southpaw Logan Allen on the bump for Cleveland on Sunday, Justyn-Henry Malloy will replace Carpenter in the lineup, manning right field while batting sixth.
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Tigers' Kerry Carpenter: Totals five RBI in win
Rotowire
Carpenter went 4-for-6 with a homer, a double and five RBI in Sunday's win over the Angels.
Carpenter plated a pair of runs with a double in the second and then blew the game wide open with a three-run shot to center field in the sixth. He now has three homers in his last six games and has notched three-plus hits in two of his last three. Carpenter has recently seen a majority of his starts coming from the leadoff spot, and it's paid off, as he leads the team with a .295 batting average after Sunday's massive day.
