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    • Detroit Tigers are riding a meteor like Kerry Carpenter’s epic home run
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    Detroit Tigers are riding a meteor like Kerry Carpenter’s epic home run

    Vaseline Posted on

    CLEVELAND — The ball took off like a meteor.

    Screaming through the air. Cutting through the drama. Carrying an entire city. Leaving a trail of screams and joy: pure joy for the Detroit Tigers.

    “I blacked out,” Tigers outfielder Riley Greene said. “I screamed – we all screamed.”

    Heck, all of Detroit screamed Monday after Kerry Carpenter hit a majestic three-run homer off Emmanuel Clase — the best closer in baseball — as the Tigers pulled off a dramatic, heart-in-your-throat, 3-0 victory over Cleveland in Game 2 of the ALDS.

    “I was in the weight room doing my post-throw stuff,” said left-handed starter Tarik Skubal, who was once again simply brilliant, throwing seven innings of shutout ball and setting the stage for this moment. “I was on the ground and I think that’s the fastest I’ve ever been in my life. What a swing from a very good pitcher, also the best closer in the game. That was incredible to see.”

    If the Tigers’ improbable rise to the postseason wasn’t enough, if the dramatic win over Houston in an AL wild-card series wasn’t enough, this homer was just as improbable, as this is Clase’s first ever in the ‘ postseason’ has allowed. , and only the third this season.

    “That might have been a life-changer,” Greene said.

    Indeed.

    And the magnitude of this moment cannot be overstated.

    LISTEN: Dan Dickerson’s call of Kerry Carpenter’s Tigers home run is electric

    A magical journey

    Consider Timmerman’s journey to this moment.

    Here was a 27-year-old who was drafted in the 19th round of 2019 (shoutout to Matt Zmuda, the area scout who signed him).

    Here was a guy who was floundering in the minor leagues until he made a swing change.

    Here was a guy who missed almost half of this season due to a back problem.

    And here was a guy who is such a team-first player in every sense of the word. He started this match on the bench, but he didn’t complain or act like a jerk; he simply hit the biggest home run of his life.

    “I knew it was over and it was just a great feeling to be able to come through for this team because our pitchers keep us in these games like crazy,” Carpenter said. “It’s great to be able to come through for our pitching staff, especially Skubal. These guys are putting everything out there for us, and to be able to come through for them, in a shutout, is incredible. So those were kind of my emotions. I wanted to celebrate with everyone.”

    Clase threw three straight cutters and then three straight sliders – the last of which Carpenter crushed.

    “I was just hitting a certain zone and my instincts took over,” Carpenter said.

    It was monumental for Carpenter, but it creates a huge opportunity for the Tigers. It puts them in a great position heading home for two games at Comerica Park.

    “I can’t say enough about Skubal,” Carpenter said. “It’s incredible. He is our leader. Every inning he goes out there, even if he got in trouble today, no one in our dugout thought he wasn’t going to get out.

    Think about that.

    After the greatest moment of his life, Carpenter focused on Skubal.

    “He’s incredible,” Carpenter said. “And the way he lights our team up and the way he goes out there and executes and gets ground balls when he needs to, gets strikeouts when he needs to, it’s fun to watch, and I’m happy that he is on my team and that he is my leader.”

    SHAWN WINDSOR: Do you think the Detroit Tigers story couldn’t be better? They just proved you wrong. Again.

    Stars are perfectly aligned

    So many things lined up perfectly to capture this moment.

    And it all started because of the way Tigers manager AJ Hinch set his lineup.

    Hinch started Justyn-Henry Malloy as the designated hitter and batted him as a weapon against Matthew Boyd, a lefty. Malloy responded and went 2-for-3.

    But he had saved a spot in the lineup specifically for Carpenter.

    That entire time, Carpenter was on the bench.

    Waiting for his time.

    The plan all along was to use Carpenter for Malloy when the time was right.

    Think about what it says about Carpenter, not to mention this team, that a guy with this kind of talent is willing to take on this kind of role.

    But it’s not just Timmerman. Hinch has mixed and matched throughout this stellar run.

    And the lesson can be applied to anyone. How a player’s wishes are put aside for the good of the team – it’s one of the strengths of this team.

    “I feel like the moment is never too big for him,” Greene said. “He’s always locked in at the plate, and you know, I feel like he’s always trying to help us win.”

    While this game featured a dramatic pitching battle, with several big defensive plays thrown in, Carpenter waited. He didn’t go to the batting cages to take extra swings because he felt ready.

    “We’ve missed him for a long time this year and obviously he’s the focal point of our offense,” Hinch said. “When we deal with right-handed pitching, he usually bats second, third or fourth. If not, he has his helmet on and his bat in his hand pretty much every inning until we decide to let him go. Everyone knows it. It’s no secret that he’s a big threat and he’s prepared, and he’s as balanced a person as you can get, which allows him to stay grounded in whatever we ask him to do. We have missed him tremendously this past year. And this is an example. Nowadays it’s easy to say why. But there are so many other things he brings that will have an incredible impact on our team.”

    But there were several things that caused this moment.

    With two outs in the ninth, catcher Jake Rogers singled to left.

    BREEDING WINNERS: The epic story of the Detroit Tigers is no piece of cake: the organization is poised for long-term success

    Then Trey Sweeney – a rookie the Tigers added at the trade deadline – singled to center.

    “You’ve got to get guys to do something for him to give him that opportunity,” Hinch said. “And we had three two-out hits against the best closer in baseball. I’m really happy with the way we finally found a way to score some big hits.”

    If those two can’t get along, Carpenter can’t even bat in the ninth.

    “I wanted to have a shot,” Carpenter said. “And those guys put together some great swings, because there probably aren’t that many innings this year where Clase gave up two hits in one inning, let alone three.”

    So the Tigers’ magical ride continues.

    Back to Detroit.

    “We have two games in our place now,” Hinch said. “We know it’s going to be electric. We know Detroit has been waiting a long time for a playoff game. We’ll have a few and a chance to take control of this series.

    HIGHLIGHT REEL: Tarik Skubal missed Kerry Carpenter’s game-winning HR for Tigers in Game 2 of ALDS

    The boys are coming home.

    And this amazing, unlikely, magical journey continues. It’s wild and fast and exciting.

    It’s like hitching a ride on a meteor.

    Contact Jeff Seidel: [email protected]. Follow him on X @seideljeff. To read his recent columns, visit freep.com/sports/jeff-seidel.

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