10/12/24 01:55:00
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10/12 13:53 CDT Carpenter delivers pinch-hit RBI single for Tigers in Game 5,
limping to first with hamstring injury
Carpenter delivers pinch-hit RBI single for Tigers in Game 5, limping to first
with hamstring injury
By TOM WITHERS
AP Sports Weiter
CLEVELAND (AP) --- Kerry Carpenter delivered again for the Tigers.
Slowed by a hamstring injury, Carpenter hit a pinch-hit RBI single in the fifth
inning Saturday to give Detroit a 1-0 lead over the Cleveland Guardians in Game
5 of the AL Division Series.
Carpenter, who hit a three-run homer in Game 2 off All-Star closer Emmanuel
Clase, laced his single into right-center field off rookie Andrew Walters to
score Trey Sweeney, who walked to open the inning.
On his way to first, Carpenter favored his leg, limping like Kirk Gibson did
when he connected for his famous walk-off homer to win Game 1 of the 1988 World
Series for the Los Angeles Dodgers.
The Tigers were hoping Carpenter could come off the bench to help in the
win-or-else series finale. After his single, he pumped his fists at his
teammates celebrating in the dugout.
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.
"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 before the
game. "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 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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