10/12/24 10:15:00
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10/12 10:13 CDT Tigers hope Carpenter can come off bench in ALDS Game 5 while
dealing with hamstring injury
Tigers hope Carpenter can come off bench in ALDS Game 5 while dealing with
hamstring injury
By TOM WITHERS
AP Sports Weiter
CLEVELAND (AP) --- The Detroit Tigers are hoping slugger Kerry Carpenter can
come off the bench in Saturday's decisive Game 5 of the AL Division Series
against Cleveland despite dealing with a hamstring injury.
Carpenter got injured while running the bases in Game 4 on Thursday night.
The quick turnaround --- and MLB's decision to move the starting time up seven
hours, citing a chance of inclement weather --- didn't give him much recovery
time.
But manager A.J. Hinch said Carpenter took batting practice Friday and was
feeling better. Hinch said Carpenter will go through a full pregame workout
before the team makes a decision on whether he can play.
"He's sore and he's dealing with some discomfort and not feeling 100%, but he's
also feeling some adrenaline for Game 5 in the ALDS," Hinch said. "So that's a
good counter to not feeling at your best, and hopefully that adrenaline and
that excitement will override the issues that he's dealing with.
"He was happy with how he hit. I was happy with how he hit. Our hitting guys
felt like he was taking full swings. And this morning when he woke up, he was
on the early bus and was in great spirits. So when I saw the big smile, I got
more and more optimistic that we were going to get good news."
Carpenter came in as a pinch-hitter in the eighth inning of Game 2, and in his
second at-bat hit a three-run homer in the ninth off Cleveland All-Star closer
Emmanuel Clase as the Tigers won 3-0 to even the series.
The Tigers need Carpenter's power. He had 18 homers this season despite playing
in just 87 games because of a lower back stress fracture that sidelined him
from May 26 to Aug. 13.
With the Guardians starting left-hander Matthew Boyd for Game 5, Carpenter, who
bats from the left, probably wouldn't have started anyway. He was on the bench
for most of Game 2 before coming in as a pinch-hitter in the eighth.
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AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/MLB
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