CLEMSON, S.C. – Former Tiger catcher Cooper Ingle (Asheville, N.C.) made his major league debut with the Cleveland Guardians as the starter at DH against the Seattle Mariners at home on Friday night. Ingle became the 74th former Tiger to play in a major league game and seventh in 2026.
In three seasons (2021-23) at Clemson, he hit .329 with 29 doubles, 14 homers, 81 RBIs, 112 runs, a .476 slugging percentage, .425 on-base percentage and two steals in 126 games (120 starts). He also struck out just 62 times in 483 at-bats.
After seeing limited action as a freshman in 2021, he hit .351 with eight homers and 44 RBIs in 54 games as a sophomore in 2022.
As a junior in 2023, he hit .328 with six homers and 34 RBIs in 62 games to earn Third-Team All-ACC accolades. He also had hitting streaks of 19 games and 16 games along with a 51-game on-base streak in 2023 as well as earning All-ACC Tournament and Clemson Regional All-Tournament honors.
After the season, he was drafted in the fourth round (No. 125 overall pick) by the Guardians and signed in July.
Ingle played in the Guardians' minor league system from 2023-26, including with AAA Columbus in 2026, when he hit .284 with nine doubles, a triple, 12 homers, 41 RBIs, a .515 slugging percentage, .416 on-base percentage and a steal in 51 games.
In 283 career minor league games, Ingle hit .282 with 33 homers, 173 RBIs and a .408 on-base percentage.
Every Tiger team from 1974 to 2023 had at least one future major leaguer on its roster.