Detroit Tigers’ Parker Meadows confident in timing of swing in return from injured list

Detroit Tigers center fielder Parker Meadows is back in action.

The 24-year-old was slated to start Saturday’s game against the Kansas City Royals at Comerica Park, his first game for the Tigers since July 7. The Tigers activated him from the injured list following the completion of his rehab assignment with Triple-A Toledo.

Meadows has fully recovered from a right hamstring strain.

“It feels great,” Meadows said. “It feels like it’s been a long time, but I’m glad to be back.”

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Meadows completed four games in his rehab assignment.

“We’re excited to get him back,” manager A.J. Hinch said. “I’ll probably give him the day game off, and we’ll ease him into the more everyday role. … It’s nice to see him walk through the door and be ready to play.”

He hit .214 (3-for-14) with two walks and three strikeouts in four games, playing two of four games in center field. He gained trust in his legs over those four games.

“It’s hard to get past that,” Meadows said. “Once I made those first couple of steps full sprint, I realized I was good to go and felt good.”

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Now that Meadows is back, he hopes to build upon a successful three games from early July. Remember, the Tigers recalled Meadows from Triple-A Toledo, but in his third game, he suffered the hamstring injury while trying to steal second base.

Meadows credited an adjustment to his swing mechanics and a fix to the timing of his swing for his three-game success, in which he hit .364 (4-for-11) with one home run, one walk and two home runs against the Cincinnati Reds.

“Obviously, it’s a little hard not seeing live pitching for however long it was,” Meadows said, when asked about the timing of his swing. “It’s part of the game. I’m going to keep the same confidence.”

Casey Mize ahead of Kerry Carpenter, Riley Greene?

Right-hander Casey Mize (left hamstring strain), outfielder Kerry Carpenter (lumbar spine stress fracture) and outfielder Riley Greene (right hamstring strain) participated in a live batting practice session before Saturday’s game at Comerica Park.

Mize simulated two innings.

“I didn’t think about the leg at all,” Greene said. “Felt good, felt normal.”

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Carpenter, who hasn’t played in a game since May 26, needs to complete base-running drills Sunday, but he sounded like he expected to start a rehab assignment as soon as Tuesday.

“It’s a probably,” Carpenter said. “If the baserunning goes well, and I think it will, then I’ll be good. … I’m excited to be back out there. That would be amazing. I miss it.”

Hinch, though, explained that Mize is ahead of Carpenter and Greene in the rehab assignment process, which is surprising because Mize — whom the Tigers recently transferred to the 60-day injured list — isn’t eligible to return to the Tigers until Aug. 30.

The Tigers certainly won’t have Mize make five rehab starts in return from a hamstring strain, will they?

“He’ll be first to get challenged a little bit more depending how he comes out of it,” Hinch said of Mize. “The sun is starting to shine a little bit with these guys, where they can get out to a rehab at some point, but they’re not all going to be on the same timeline. Casey is probably, from a decision standpoint, a little faster than the others.”

Contact Evan Petzold at epetzold@freepress.com or follow him @EvanPetzold.

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