Due to injury, Carpenter only played in 87 games this year. The Tigers placed Carpenter on the injured list in late May due to a stress fracture of his lumbar spine, which kept him away from the team until mid-August. Carpenter’s return to the lineup coincided with the Tigers catching fire and the chance of reaching the postseason increasing from less than 1% to a win ahead of the franchise’s first ALCS appearance since 2013.

The Tigers had a 25-25 record in Carpenter’s 50 appearances before the injury and finished 24-13 when he returned to the lineup. His role remains as a left-handed specialist who makes a living destroying right-handed pitching. He had 236 at-bats against right-handers, compared to just 28 against left-handers.

“I hope we can have him back out there on Saturday,” Jung said.

Carpenter’s absence in the final three innings of the Game 4 loss was felt, especially in the bottom of the ninth inning when Clase got Jung to gently take his place in the lineup. But his impact was evident late in the comeback attempt in a subtle way.

Carpenter and right-handed outfielder/designated hitter Justyn-Henry Malloy spent most of the first innings discussing hitting approaches together in the dugout while Detroit was on the field. Malloy entered the game as a pinch-hitter in the ninth, ripped a leadoff double and ultimately pushed Cleveland’s lead to 5-4.