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Kerry Carpenter hits 3 home runs in Detroit Tigers' 13-1 win over Chicago White Sox
CHICAGO — Kerry Carpenter hit three home runs against the Chicago White Sox on Monday, June 2, in the opener of a four-game series at Rate Field — launching his first shot in the first inning, another in the fourth, and his final blast in the sixth.
The Detroit Tigers won easily, 12-1.
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They're the first MLB team to 40 wins, with a 40-21 record.
The 27-year-old, a former 19th-round draft pick, became the first Tigers player to hit three homers in a game since Victor Martinez on June 16, 2016.
It marked the best game of Carpenter's four-year MLB career, which now spans 292 games. He finished 3-for-5 with five RBIs in five plate appearances.
His three home runs combined for 1,156 feet.
These were the three homers: In the first, he hit a middle-middle 83.9 mph changeup from right-hander Jonathan Cannon for a 401-foot homer to right-center field. In the fourth, he hit a down-and-in 87.5 mph cutter from right-handed reliever Bryse Wilson for a 357-foot homer to right field. In the sixth, he hit a middle-middle 92.4 mph fastball from Wilson for a 398-foot homer to center field.
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The first homer put the Tigers ahead, 2-0, in the first inning, the second homer made it 8-0 in the fourth, and the third homer increased the Tigers' lead to 10-0 in the sixth.
Carpenter is hitting .276 with 13 home runs in 56 games this season, posting an .822 OPS. He had been in the leadoff spot, but the return of Parker Meadows pushed him down to third in the lineup for the first time in 2025.
The Tigers benefitted from a pair of non-Carpenter home runs: Dillon Dingler in the first inning and Wenceel Pérez in the second inning, both off Cannon.
In the eighth inning, Carpenter flew out to center field in his attempt for his fourth home run. He also struck out swinging with a runner in scoring position in the second inning.
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Only 19 players have hit four home runs in a game, including Arizona Diamondbacks third baseman Eugenio Suárez on April 26, 2025. Before then, a four-homer game hadn't happened since J.D. Martinez — also for the Diamondbacks — in September 4, 2017.
No player has ever hit multiple four-homer games in their MLB career.
Jack Flaherty shines
Right-hander Jack Flaherty allowed one run on four hits and one walk with four strikeouts in six innings, throwing 99 pitches. The White Sox scored their lone run in the sixth.
The 29-year-old owns a 2.22 ERA with six walks and 26 strikeouts across 24⅓ innings in his past four starts, including one run in his last 12 innings.
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He has a 3.72 ERA in 12 starts.
An amazing catch
The Tigers made a one-in-a-million catch in the fifth inning, courtesy of the catcher and the third baseman.
It was Dingler to Zach McKinstry.
A ball hit into foul territory tipped off Dingler's glove, then ricocheted off McKinstry's leg, and somehow ended up in McKinstry's glove — just before landing in the dirt.
The play happened in front of Chicago's dugout.
This story will be updated.
Contact Evan Petzold at epetzold@ or follow him @EvanPetzold.
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This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Detroit Tigers score: Kerry Carpenter hits 3 homers in Tigers' 13-1 win
