Tigers fans should expect more of the same out of Kerry Carpenter despite postseason heroics

Kerry Carpenter’s postseason swing is going to live in Tigers lore for a long time. It deserves to. In a moment that tight, with Comerica and the entire city of Detroit practically holding its breath, he ran into a Gabe Speier pitch in Game 5 of the ALDS and turned it into the kind of home run you replay when you need to remember what playoff baseball feels like. 

But if you’re a Tigers fan hoping that one October blast automatically unlocks “everyday Kerry Carpenter” in 2026 — you should probably brace for a lot of the same conversations we’ve been having for several seasons.

Kerry Carpenter’s postseason swing doesn’t change his regular-season reality

The thing is, Detroit doesn’t need Kerry Carpenter to reinvent himself to be valuable. They need him to keep being the same guy he’s been, the left-handed bat that punishes righties and can change a game with one swing. And that gets lost when the platoon debate turns into a referendum on toughness or trust.

The lefty issue isn’t a vibe. It’s more about numbers. Carpenter is a .207 career hitter against lefties in the regular season, and last year he hit .217 (13-for-60) with 14 strikeouts. That’s the profile of a guy who’s most dangerous when Detroit can control the matchups and keep him in his happy place.

And A.J. Hinch flat-out told you what’s driving those late-game pinch-hit decisions: it’s not one swing, it’s the leverage — and how strong Detroit’s right-handed options are when the other manager goes to a lefty. That doesn’t get less true because Carpenter ran into one in the postseason. If anything, the postseason homer just adds a wrinkle. Hinch might ride him for an extra plate appearance in the middle innings now and then, hoping to steal a big moment later. 

What also hasn’t changed is the personnel reality. Jahmai Jones and Matt Vierling are still around, Detroit added Austin Slater as veteran depth, and two right-handed bats with real lefty damage at Triple-A (Hao-Yu Lee and Max Anderson) are looming as matchup weapons. 

So yes, Carpenter is working for more chances, we’ll see left-on-left at-bats in camp, trying to build better “swing decisions.” That’s all real. But Tigers fans should expect the outcome to be familiar. Carpenter mashes righties, gets managed aggressively late, and still ends up being one of the scariest situational hitters Detroit can deploy when the game gets sharp.