Kerry Carpenter (DET): 3-5, 2 HR, 2 R, 3 RBI.
Little House on the Kerry
After spending two and a half months on the IL with a lumbar spine stress fracture, Kerry Carpenter returned to the Tigers' lineup last night for his first game since May 26th and didn't miss a beat. The power-swinging lefty picked up right where he left off, leading the Tigers' 15-1 dismantling of the Mariners by going 3-5, 2 HR, 2 R, 3 RBI.
George Kirby got the better of Carpenter in their first matchup, punching him out on five pitches, but that's pretty much where the good times ended for Kirby. On the first pitch of their second matchup, Carpenter punished a badly placed four-seamer, taking it 372 feet the opposite way for a solo shot. In their third and final battle, Carpenter went yard again, this time pulling a Kirby splitter 392 feet into Comerica Park's right field seats.
With his instantaneous resurgence, Carpenter's up to a .293/.349/.613 slash line with 10 homers in just 163 plate appearances. His batted-ball metrics are up there with some of the best in baseball—a .380 xwOBA, .568 xSLG, and 16.5% barrel rate–making his power surge no fluke.
Carpenter was sitting against lefty starters before his IL stint, and although that likely continues, his power potential and premium position in the lineup should make him a valuable asset in nearly every fantasy league. He's shockingly available in 60% and 90% of Yahoo! and ESPN fantasy leagues, so pick him up while you can.
Let's see how the other hitters did Tuesday:
Jake Rogers (DET): 3-5, 2 2B, HR, R, 7 RBI.
Carpenter wasn't the only Tiger to go off in Detroit's 15-run explosion. Rogers hasn't been able to replicate last year's 21-homer output, but he looked good last night. Each of his three extra-base hits yesterday had EVs above 100 mph boosting his above-average 42.3% hard-hit rate. He's started to lose playing time to Dillon Dingler recently, so even though he's one of the best readily available power options behind the plate, he'll likely only crack the lineup about three times a week.
Gio Urshela (DET): 4-5, HR, 3 R, RBI.
I know, I know, I can't exclusively cover the Tigers here, but Urshela deserves a shoutout too. He laced four hits last night, almost exactly two years to the date from his last four-hit day: August 16, 2022 against the Royals. The veteran corner infielder has found much more playing time than anyone would've expected at the beginning of the year, and although his .247/.290/.338 slash line is good for just a 75 wRC+, he'll likely keep playing more often than not given Detroit's uninspiring contingency options.
Juan Soto (NYY): 3-4, 3 HR, 3 R, 4 RBI, BB.
That's the first three-homer game of Soto's storied career and his sixth multi-blast performance of the season. He accounted for all of the Yankees' runs in the team's 4-1 win over the lowly White Sox. I don't need to break down all of Soto's stats to tell you that he's pretty dang good at baseball, but it's worth noting that his 7.5 fWAR is a new single-season best with about a month and a half left to play. I can't wait to see the ludicrous number one lucky team will get to pay him over the next 10+ years.
Shea Langeliers (OAK): 4-4, 2 2B, HR, 2 R, 4 RBI.
That's back-to-back four-hit games for Langeliers as he and the A's got the better of their former teammate Paul Blackburn. Langeliers has shown the exact kind of improvement you want to see from a young player. He's improved his strikeout (27.2%), walk (7.3%), and swinging-strike rates (14%) for the second straight season and is up to a .226/.288/.466 slash line with 22 home runs and 61 RBI.
Connor Wong (BOS): 2-4, 2B, HR, 2 R, 3 RBI.
Tuesday was quite a night for catchers with Wong being the third backstop to make the rundown. He tallied six total bases in Boston's 9-4 win over the defending World Series champions and is in the middle of the best season of his career. Wong's up to a .345 wOBA and 118 wRC+, and his 11 home runs are a new career high. I'm not sure if Wong will ever shake off the unrealistic expectations put on him as part of the return for Mookie Betts, but he's turned into a solid option behind the plate.
Max Kepler (MIN): 3-5, HR, R, 4 RBI.
It's been a down season for Kepler power-wise, so it was nice to see him leave the yard last night, especially coming against fellow lefty Will Smith. It was just Kepler's eighth home run of the season and his second against a southpaw. Kepler's slashing .271/.320/.412 on the campaign which is a solid enough batting line, but there's trouble under the hood. Now at 31 years old, Kepler's 6% walk rate and 11.2% swinging strike rate are both career-worst marks, and those are numbers that don't tend to get better entering your early 30s. This may be the start of the decline for the long-time Twin.
Jose Miranda (MIN): 3-5, 2B, 3B, 2 R, 2 RBI.
After his red-hot July where he hit .439, Miranda's crashed back down to Earth and entered yesterday's game hitting .219 with just one home run in August. Those monthly numbers sure look a lot better now, though, with Miranda completing three parts of the cycle against Seth Lugo and the Kansas City bullpen. Miranda owns a .313/.353/.500 triple slash line on the season, but rides the pine a couple of games each week given the Twins' crowded lineup.
Will Smith (LAD): 3-4, 2B, HR, 2 R, RBI.
Make that four catchers with big performances on Tuesday! Smith didn't want to be left out of the Batter's Box Backstop Extravaganza™, collecting three hard hits in the Dodgers' 7-2 win in Milwaukee. He set the tone early, winning an impressive nine-pitch battle against Colin Rea in the second inning, pulling an inside sinker 412 feet for a solo shot to open the scoring. Smith's up to his usual antics, slashing .251/.331/.444 with 16 home runs, 57 runs, and 62 RBI. Here's how consistently good Smith has been since his 2019 debut: his current 115 wRC+ would be a career worst.
Alex Bregman (HOU): 3-5, 2B, HR, 2 R, RBI.
An awful start to the season is totally in the rearview mirror for Bregman. He had a lowly 54 wRC+ through the season's first six weeks, but has 18 home runs and a 140 wRC+ since May 13th. Overall it's shaping up to be yet another .260/25 homer season for the consistent veteran, and I'm sure plenty of teams will be hoping to make him their next man at the hot corner when he hits free agency this winter.
Andrés Chaparro (WSN): 3-4, 3 2B, 2 R, RBI.
If you're not familiar with Chaparro, you're not alone. I did a double-take seeing his name among the day's top performers, but give yourself a pass because this was his MLB debut. He's a 25-year-old corner infielder who's probably best suited as a DH. He spent seven years in the Yankees minor league system before joining the Diamondbacks this winter. He was traded to. D.C. at the deadline in return for Dylan Floro, and the Nats will likely give him some run the rest of the season given his impressive .328/.405/.572 slash line with 23 home runs and 85 RBI over 402 Triple-A at-bats. He's a relatively unknown prospect—he was #33 on FanGraphs' Nationals' prospect list and unranked on MLB.com's—so you don't need to rush to add him.
Jake McCarthy (ARI): 3-5, 2 RBI.
Three singles aren't typically notable, but when the last one is a walk-off it draws some attention. McCarthy's clutch opposite-field base knock sent the Diamondbacks to their fifth straight win and their 18th victory in their last 21 contests. McCarthy's played his way into a full-time starting gig. He's started 15 of Arizona's last 17 games and has slashed .448/.467/.741 over that stretch with three homers and four steals. He's available in over 50% of both ESPN and Yahoo! fantasy leagues.
