Tigers Announce Kerry Carpenter Update After Eight Straight Missed Games

Tigers Announce Kerry Carpenter Update After Eight Straight Missed Games originally appeared on Athlon Sports.

Kerry Carpenter is in his fourth major-league season with the Detroit Tigers after making his debut in 2022.

During his first three seasons in Detroit, Carpenter faced primarily right-handed pitching and dominated the platoon advantage, consistently delivering against right-handed pitching.

In 2024, he had a .284 batting average with a .932 OPS and 18 home runs, despite appearing in just 87 games. Carpenter also emerged as a postseason hero last October, mashing a three-run home run in Game 2 of the ALDS against the Cleveland Guardians.

This year, in 2025, he has taken his at-bats against both lefties and righties and continued to produce, though his overall numbers have dipped slightly.

On June 29, during a road game against the Minnesota Twins, Carpenter suffered a right hamstring injury while running the bases and exited in the fifth inning after tacking on an RBI triple. The team removed him immediately to prevent further damage, and he was placed on the 10-day injured list.

Ahead of Tuesday’s series opener against the Tampa Bay Rays, Detroit announced that Carpenter is completing a return to play running progression. He’s also swinging the bat and completing defensive drills daily.

Alex Lange has been returned from his rehab assignment after reporting lat tightness pic.twitter.com/n8lqJgnidy

— Cody Stavenhagen (@CodyStavenhagen) July 8, 2025

In 78 games this season—his first as an everyday player—Carpenter owns a .257 batting average, .780 OPS, 16 home runs and 32 RBIs.

He’s been a key contributor to a Tigers offense that averages five runs per game, tied for fifth in all of MLB.

With Detroit holding baseball’s best record at 58–34, Carpenter’s offensive production has played a huge role in keeping the Tigers at the top of the American League standings.

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This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jul 8, 2025, where it first appeared.