Detroit, MI

Detroit Tigers scratch Kerry Carpenter with hamstring tightness: ‘Just being cautious’

Published

6 months ago

June 4, 2025

Detroit Tigers scratch Kerry Carpenter with hamstring tightness: ‘Just being cautious’

CHICAGO — The Detroit Tigers scratched outfielder Kerry Carpenter from the starting lineup Wednesday, June 4, against the Chicago White Sox at Rate Field, in which he was supposed to play right field and bat fifth.

Carpenter suffered right hamstring tightness.

“He’s been dealing with this for a couple of days, navigating through the typical wear and tear of the season,” manager A.J. Hinch said, adding Carpenter remains available as a pinch-hitter. “We’re just being cautious.”

Wenceel Pérez replaced Carpenter in Wednesday’s lineup.

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Is Carpenter undergoing any tests?

“No, no, no,” Hinch said before Wednesday’s game. “He’s going to pinch-hit in the seventh inning.”

Carpenter — who launched three home runs Monday, June 2, against the White Sox — is hitting .273 with 13 home runs, seven walks and 44 strikeouts across 57 games in 2025, making 39 starts in the outfield and 11 starts at designated hitter.

He hasn’t played in the outfield since Saturday, May 31, against the Kansas City Royals at Kauffman Stadium — his last of eight games in a row in the outfield.

“That’s why I’ve DH’d him a couple of days in a row,” Hinch said. “I sat him on Sunday. I pulled him early last night. I was going to put him in the outfield, but an after meeting with him today, I decided to scratch him.”

Carpenter has a history with injuries and has never stayed healthy for a full season.

The 27-year-old landed on the injured list in each of his first three MLB seasons (2022-24): left lumbar spine strain in September 2022, right shoulder sprain in April 2023 and lumbar spine stress fracture in May 2024.

He also suffered a left hamstring strain in spring training in February 2024, a left hamstring injury in Game 4 of the ALDS in October 2024 and right hamstring soreness in April 2025. None of those issues required a stint on the injured list.

The Tigers have a roster logjam on the right side of the infield, which often pushes Carpenter to the outfield. If Colt Keith is the designated hitter, Gleyber Torres is at second base, and Spencer Torkelson is at first, where does Carpenter fit?

Carpenter should be the Tigers’ everyday designated hitter — both to protect his health and hide his below-average defense — but there isn’t a spot for him at designated hitter without benching Keith, Torres or Torkelson.

That’s putting his health at risk.

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Casey Mize: ‘I feel good’

Right-hander Casey Mize is set to start Thursday, June 5, in the finale of the four-game series against the White Sox. It will be his third start since returning from a left hamstring strain, which sent him to the injured list for the minimum 15 days.

His four-seam fastball averaged about 95 mph in his first seven starts, all before the injury. Since returning, his fastball averaged 93.2 mph in his eighth start and 93.7 mph in his ninth start.

There’s no reason to be worried.

“I feel good,” Mize said. “I’m super routine-oriented. I’m diving back into what I was doing before, the normal five- or six-day routine. Body feels good. I’m ready to go.”

The velocity on his splitter has stayed the same, hovering around 88 mph.

Mize has a 2.82 ERA in nine starts.

Dylan Smith optioned to Triple-A Toledo

The Tigers optioned right-handed reliever Dylan Smith to Triple-A Toledo, opening the door for right-hander Sawyer Gipson-Long to return from the 60-day injured list to start Wednesday against the White Sox.

Called up from Toledo on Friday, May 30, Smith made his MLB debut Monday and pitched in back-to-back games. The 25-year-old allowed two runs on four hits and two walks in three innings, without a strikeout.

“He wasn’t very happy with how he threw his secondary pitches,” Hinch said. “He’s got some work to do to complete his full arsenal and continue this upward trend of pounding the strike zone with some pretty good stuff.”

The Tigers also recalled righty reliever Jason Foley — who underwent season-ending right shoulder surgery — from Triple-A Toledo and placed him on the 60-day injured list, creating room for Gipson-Long’s return to the 40-man roster.

Foley will receive MLB service time while rehabbing.

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

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Detroit, MI

Thompson: Detroit Riverfront Conservancy leadership has a lot to prove

Published

1 hour ago

November 19, 2025

Press Room

Thompson: Detroit Riverfront Conservancy leadership has a lot to prove

Recent revelations that the Detroit Riverfront Conservancy, which has been one of the city’s premier jewels, is making major changes, after a massive corruption scandal that took its former chief financial officer William Smith to jail for embezzling $44.3 million is good news.

The internal financial controls the conservancy is putting in place, including periodic independent audits, is necessary, considering this public body has been the recipient of millions of dollars in taxpayer money as well as private funding over the years.

No one should provide an excuse for how the conservancy was running its finances under Smith. Yes, Smith was the culprit but the blame should also be placed on everyone who had collective and overall fiduciary responsibility of the organization. The nonprofit should recognize they dropped the ball as a whole and then move forward in a way that instills public trust so it continues to draw support to beautify the riverfront.

The reduction of its board seat to 30 members from 50 is a good sign. Organizations with that many board members sometimes are bogged down in unnecessary bureaucracy which slows swift decision-making and can lead to less engagement from those who oversee the agency. Some members may feel sidelined because the major decisions often are made by an executive committee.

In the wake of the riverfront conservancy scandal, some board members reached out to me privately about their own take of events that led to how they believed Smith was running a fraudulent scheme that siphoned millions of dollars, the largest in the region’s history of public corruption scandals.

For example, one particular board member during a Saturday breakfast meeting told me he was actually not surprised about what happened with Smith because some of them were hardly engaged with the internal activities, especially the financial direction of the group. It was known to most members that only a few people were running the conservancy and that some board members felt like their role was simply ceremonial.

It looked good on a professional resume to be a member of the board of directors of the conservancy. Some of the individuals who were chosen for the board reveled only in the association instead of the responsibilities that came with the title. They knew that being on the board gave them some social capital and allowed them to be in the company of some of the region’s most influential individuals.

The group must also rethink how it selects board members as well. Simply choosing who has a bigger title in this town should no longer be the qualifier. It should be made up individuals with a deep and profound commitment to the concept and mission of making the riverfront one of the best in the nation.

The new leadership of the conservancy under CEO Ryan Sullivan has a lot to prove over the next couple of years beyond the issuance of press releases that promise strong changes and a new direction. People want to see that change is not only promised but is self-evident and that this much celebrated institution will continue to serve Detroiters and the region.

The financial scandal was not only a black eye on the organization itself, but also the city. Organizations like the Detroit Riverfront Conservancy must be exemplary in their conduct and this corruption saga must never happen again.

X (formerly Twitter): @BankoleDetNews

bankole@bankolethompson.com

Bankole Thompson’s columns appear on Mondays and Thursdays in The Detroit News.

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Detroit, MI

Tensions rise as anti-Islam protestors clash with Muslim community activists in Dearborn

Published

20 hours ago

November 19, 2025

Press Room

Tensions rise as anti-Islam protestors clash with Muslim community activists in Dearborn

Heath Kalb

November 19, 2025 / 12:21 AM EST
/ CBS Detroit

Anti-Islam demonstrators clashed with counter-protestors on Tuesday in Dearborn as a group of a few dozen marched toward city hall, shouting Islamophobic rhetoric.

“How are they coming to us and saying we’re all about division and all about Sharia Law. They’re coming here and giving us nothing but hatred,” said Ali Aljahmi, from Dearborn.

CBS News Detroit was at the scene along Michigan Avenue, where the dueling demonstrations stemmed from when Michigan Republican gubernatorial candidate Anthony Hudson falsely claimed that there was Sharia Law in Dearborn. He later walked back those statements.

“If we’re going to bring these people together, then we’re going to lead by example and come down here, put boots on the ground and walk with these people and show that we can come together,” Hudson told CBS Detroit.

Hudson led a march with supporters of his advocating for his slogan ‘Fix Michigan,” but it was another group of demonstrators, not condoned by Hudson, on that same route that stirred the pot.” Other people in the crowd included Jake Lang, a Republican who is running for a U.S. Senate seat in Florida. Lang was charged with assaulting an officer, civil disorder and other crimes in connection with the Jan. 6 riot before he was pardoned by President Trump.

CBS News Detroit was at the scene when Lang threatened to burn a Quran and taunt counter-protestors with bacon.

Dearborn police kept an eye on the protests and urged people to engage with demonstrators. One person was seen being led away in handcuffs. It’s unknown if that person will face charges.

Some protestors said they hope what happened on Tuesday sheds some light on what they call hateful demonstrations from people outside of Dearborn who are mischaracterizing the city.

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Detroit, MI

Why Dan Campbell still believes in the Detroit Lions’ offensive line

Published

2 days ago

November 18, 2025

Press Room

Why Dan Campbell still believes in the Detroit Lions’ offensive line

The Detroit Lions’ offense has sputtered all season, and one of the biggest culprits has been inconsistent play from their offensive line. It’s why Detroit’s running has sputtered at times, and it’s why Jared Goff is currently on pace for 34 sacks—the most since his first year in Detroit back in 2021.

Some struggles were expected. This offseason, the Lions lost All-Pro center Frank Ragnow to retirement and Pro Bowl guard Kevin Zeitler in free agency. They opted to start rookie Tate Ratledge at right guard, second-year Christian Mahogany at left guard (now replaced by Kayode Awosika due to injury), and veteran Graham Glasgow is back at center, a position he hasn’t regularly started at since 2022.

Against the Philadelphia Eagles, the offensive line continued its struggles. Goff was hurried and inaccurate all night, while the Lions only mustered a measly 3.5 yards per carry on the ground.

Despite the recent troubles, coach Dan Campbell believes it’s going to get better as the Lions attempt to make a playoff push in the final seven weeks of the season.

“I believe in these guys, man. I do.” Campbell said. “I just think the more they play together and they mesh, and we just do things that we do well.”

There have been games in which the Lions’ offensive line has seemingly settled in. They’ve held the opponent sackless in four of 10 games this season, and the run game has topped 150 yards in four contests so far.

Campbell believes there’s more he can do to lean into the unit’s strengths—something he thinks he could’ve done a better job of in Sunday’s loss to the Eagles.

“Every game’s different. There’s a couple of things I wish yesterday maybe I do differently, and just the way that we go about attacking those guys. Just a little bit that I think maybe can help our guys, too. There again, I just think – there’s a lot of things I think about that are always going around in my head, man. A number of different ways, ‘Well, we can do this, we can do this, we can try this.’”

Next up is the New York Giants. While they are just 2-9 on the season, they do boast a defensive line that could challenge the Lions’ front. That includes the likes of Brian Bruns, Kayvon Thibodeaux, Dexter Lawrence, and Abdul Carter.

Still, Campbell remains confident in Detroit’s front.

“I just go back to, man, I just believe in these guys. I think that they’re good enough, they know how to play together, we’ve just got to be a little more consistent in areas.”

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