MLB Playoffs 2024: Kerry Carpenter's 9th-inning home run off Emmanuel Claes leads Tigers to ALDS Game 2 win

CLEVELAND — Coming off one of the most remarkable campaigns we've ever seen from a relief pitcher, it was hard not to be excited about Guardians closer Emmanuel Claes entering a postseason game for the first time in high-leverage situations against the opposition's best bats. .

In Game 2 of the ALDS on Monday, we got our first look at such a showdown, as the score was locked at 0-0 in the late stages of a classic postseason pitchers' duel. The Tigers' Tarik Skubal made his outstanding playoff debut in Houston last week, with seven nearly flawless frames against a Guardians lineup that rarely had a chance.

But veteran left-hander Matthew Boyd matched Skubal for four-plus innings before turning the game into one of the best bullpens in baseball, holding the scoreless. Detroit and Cleveland traded defensive gems and close rallies for eight innings until Clays found himself on the mound with the game on the line.

Enter Kerry Carpenter.

The Tigers' outfielder has a special skill set. He is not a particularly gifted defender. He is not remarkably fast. A left-handed bat, he struggled against left-handed pitching with a .588 career OPS against southpaws. But when Carpenter steps into the box against right-handed pitchers, he's one of the best hitters on the planet.

This is no exaggeration. Among batters with at least 250 plate appearances against right-handed pitchers this year, only Aaron Judge (1.132 OPS), Shohei Ohtani (1.128 OPS), Bobby Witt Jr. (1.012 OPS) and Juan Soto (.999 OPS) have had more success. than Carpenter (.994 OPS).

Perhaps later this month we'll see one of those four familiar superstars; All four remain in the game as possible future Guardians opponents. But on Monday, it was Carpenter who represented Claes' toughest customer.

Like Klass, Carpenter started Game 2 waiting to hear his name called. His struggles against left-handers, to plug the lineup with Detroit's best options, have turned Carpenter into a platoon power-up of sorts, who slots into the heart of the order against right-handed starters and thrives in the dugout. , waiting to be deployed, when a left-hander starts playing for the opponent.

“Obviously, he's the focal point of our offense,” Tigers manager AJ Hinch said after his team's 3-0 win. “When we face right-handed pitching, he usually bats second, third or fourth. When he's not there, he's got his helmet and his bat in every inning until we decide to let him go.

That time came in the top of the eighth. Hinch pressed his most prized bench button, tabbing Carpenter and pinch-hitting Justin-Henry Malloy to lead things off against right-handed reliever Hunter Gaddis. Carpenter completes the count inside just one touch before popping out a slider. The Tigers followed with a couple of baserunners, prompting Clays to enter the game with two outs. Then the rally was thwarted by Steven Cowan's outstanding diving catch in left field to rob Wenzel Perez of a potential go-ahead hit.

After a 1-2-3 eighth from Will West, Claes came back from the Guardians dugout to keep the game scoreless for one more frame. For Carpenter to have another chance against the ninth grade, Detroit needs multiple batters at the bottom of the order to reach the best closer position on the planet. A Spencer Torkelson strikeout and a Parker Meadows popout weren't a particularly encouraging start.

But then catcher Jake Rogers stroked a 100-mph cutter into left field for a single, and rookie Trey Swinney, facing Clays for the first time in his life, calmly followed with a single of his own. Carpenter would get his chance.

“How about three two-out hits?” Hinch said later. “Obviously, Kerry, we want him to bat as often as possible at that moment. He can change the scoreboard. He can change the game. He can, he does it from time to time.

“But you've got to have guys do something in front of him to give him that opportunity, and we had three two-out hits against the best closer in baseball.”

For Carpenter to come through for the Tigers, he had to break the limits seemingly set by his formidable opponent: Not once this year has Clays allowed more than two hits in an outing. And as good as Carpenter is against right-handed pitching, it pales in comparison to the degree to which Claes neutralized left-handed bats: Among pitchers who faced at least 100 left-handed hitters in a season, Claes had a .282 OPS allowed. D Lowest in MLB history.

On this night, though, Claes' command weakened noticeably with each passing pitch. Two missed cutters from the outside put Carpenter up by a 2-0 count. A third cut was well positioned on the outside half, and Carpenter fouled it. Then catcher Bo Naylor lined out for a 2-1 slider, and Claes fired poorly, but Carpenter flayed a high-and-tight, 92-mph spinner for strike two. The count was back in Clase's favor, but his spots weren't close. Again, Naylor set up outside, and again, Clase's slider had another plan, this time landing in the middle of the strike zone. Carpenter fouled weakly off his feet.

As he prepared for another 2-2 pitch, Naylor was even more demonstrative, swinging his glove toward the ground as if begging his pitcher to put up his next offering — a third straight slider against a left-handed batter, an ultra-rare one. Sequence that Clase executed one other time this season – out of harm's way.

Instead, a carbon copy of the previous pitch — a slider middle-in, right where a left-handed hitter would want it — careens toward home plate. Carpenter did not miss this time either.

“I wasn't sitting on it,” he explained postgame, “but I was just in time for his hardest pitch … and my instincts took over, and he missed a spot, so I took advantage of it.”

There was no room for doubt. The ball left the bat at 110.8 mph, the highest exit velocity of Carpenter's career and the hardest hit ball allowed in the class. Right fielder Will Brennan offered a helpless jog toward the wall before the ball ran well over his head and into the seats. A advancing field filled with Guardian fans was stunned, unable to understand Claes' weakness. Jubilant Tiger fans celebrated in the scattered stands, equally stunned.

Matt Vierling followed Carpenter's blast with an infield single, and Claes' outing ended after 28 pitches. For the first time all year, manager Stephen Vogt strode to the mound and asked Claes for the ball. As the closer slowly made his way back to the dugout, the Cleveland crowd consoled him with a warm chant — an unusual sight after such a poor performance, yet a fitting response considering all Clay had accomplished up to this point.

“Emmanuel has been locked-down all year,” Vote said postgame. “He's almost perfect … and he's human. These things are going to happen, and the timing of when it happened is unfortunate, but at the same time, he's going to get the ninth ball again. It's the best closer in the game for a reason, and they happened to get him tonight. .”

For virtually the entire season, opposing hitters failed to get a break against Clays. Through the first 17 innings of this series, the Tigers couldn't do much against Cleveland's pitching. With one swing, Carpenter tagged 60% of his earned runs (3) in the regular season (5) – and delivered the first runs of this ALDS for a Tigers team that now returns to its home park with the series tied 1-1.

It was the latest and greatest moment for a player who meant so much to Detroit's lineup during the team's late-season surge. It doesn't seem like a coincidence that Detroit's push for the season began in earnest after Carpenter returned from the injured list in mid-August. After missing more than two months with a back injury, Carpenter was reinstated before a three-game series against a Mariners team that swept the Mets. The Tigers, meanwhile, dropped a series in San Francisco, dipping their playoff odds to a slight 0.3%.

Upon his return, Carpenter made an immediate impact. In the series opener against Seattle, George hit two home runs off Kirby in a 15–1 rout, and the next day had a game-tying blast in the eighth inning. The Tigers swept the Mariners, marking the beginning of what has been a truly special stretch — one that's still going nearly two months later, thanks in large part to Carpenter's continued contributions.

“We've missed him a ton over the years,” Hinch said. “And this is an example — why it is easy to say today. but [there are] There's so much more that he brings to the table that makes an incredible impact on our team.”

With veteran right-hander Alex Cobb slated to start for Cleveland in Game 3, it's a safe bet that when the series resumes in Detroit on Wednesday, Carpenter will be in the starting lineup. While his next big moment has yet to be determined, one thing is certain: A Comerica Park crowd that hasn't seen postseason baseball in a decade will give him a hero's welcome.

Two wins away from the ALCS, Carpenter can make his mark on this memorable Tigers run.