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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