Kerry Carpenter's Dominance of George Kirby Keys Tigers' Game 1 ALDS Win
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Going into Game 1 of the American League Division Series against the Seattle Mariners, the Detroit Tigers knew they were facing a tall task against pitcher George Kirby. Early on, the 27-year-old was dealing and leading 1-0 after a Julio Rodriguez fourth-inning home run.
Runs in the postseason can be at a premium at times, and that figured to be the case for the Tigers against Kirby. Answering back the Rodriguez home run was necessary for Detroit, and they had the right part of the lineup coming up to do that.
In the top of the fifth, Parker Meadows reached on a one-out single and, after a Gleyber Torres groundout moved Meadows to second, up stepped Kerry Carpenter. If there was one batter Kirby didn’t want to see in the situation, it was Detroit’s right fielder.
Carpenter took a 1-2 pitch from Kirby and hit it into the stands in right field for a two-run home run and a 2-1 Tigers lead. After Seattle tied the game in the bottom of the sixth, it took a Zach McKinstry single in the top of the 11th to break the tie and give Detroit a 1-0 series lead with a 3-2 win. Winning Game 1 is big with the Mariners without ace Brian Woo for the series, who remains out injured.
Kerry Carpenter Continues George Kirby Dominance
Going into the game, Carpenter had four hits in eight at-bats against Kirby, all home runs. That's what made the at-bat so big in the fifth for both players. As it turned out, Carpenter’s fifth hit of his career off of Kirby left the field of play for a home run.
“I tend to see (Kirby) well. He's so good, though,” Carpenter said to MLB.com. “... I was seeing him well tonight, especially after that first at-bat. I feel like I got my timing back a little bit. And I just wanted to make sure to get a good pitch to hit.”
Carpenter has made his hits count against Kirby during his career. He didn’t face him this year in either series the two teams played, and he had two home runs in 2023 and 2024 off the right-hander.
“I don't even know if it was a strike,” said Tigers manager A.J. Hinch. “but it was a homer. I know that.”
That hit didn’t win the game, but it set up Detroit to grab the first game, knowing that their ace, Tarik Skubal, is getting the ball in Game 2 on Sunday at 8:03 p.m. ET at T-Mobile Park.
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Scott Roche has covered both college and professional sports for nearly three decades for various outlets. Scott has covered the MLB, NHL, and college sports and he is someone always looking for a good rumor, no matter which sport it is.