First Memory
Definitely not baseball, and definitely not an old building where baseball used to be played.
First Memory
Flip your switch -
Is there nothing you view with passion, mystery, or childhood awe?
If not, I feel sorry for you
First Memory
"Picking up the tickets on the corner of Michigan and Trumbel and walking up the long ramp into the dark corridors. Eyes adjusting from bright to dark and then to walk out the entrance to the seats and the eyes adjusting again from dark to bright sunshine and the green of the grass and the seats. It was almost mystical. I will never forget that early adolescent memory. It is intrinsically locked in my entire being.
Now don't get me wrong. I like Comerica Park (even though I did not want to). However, Comerica can never capture (for me) the magical, mystical, memory impacting experiences I had at Tiger Stadium (Briggs Stadium when I first started going)."
-Beer_is_Proof, Madison Hts, MI
I think those tickets you bought were dipped in LSD, lol. Its the only way to explain what you experienced there buddy. Did you have an orgasm on your way in? lol
Yankee fans don't even get that excited about the 26 championships won at Yankee Stadium. The tigers won what like 1 or 2? lol. You fans are unbelievable.
First Memory
Picking up the tickets on the corner of Michigan and Trumbel and walking up the long ramp into the dark corridors. Eyes adjusting from bright to dark and then to walk out the entrance to the seats and the eyes adjusting again from dark to bright sunshine and the green of the grass and the seats. It was almost mystical. I will never forget that early adolescent memory. It is intrinsically locked in my entire being.
Now don't get me wrong. I like Comerica Park (even though I did not want to). However, Comerica can never capture (for me) the magical, mystical, memory impacting experiences I had at Tiger Stadium (Briggs Stadium when I first started going).
Is this really a forum?
I cannot believe they have a forum here dedicated to the memory of tigers stadium. This is just too much. Its enough that this average team dominates my local sports talk airwaves with delerious fan talk, but when I hear large segments on my former favorite shows dedicated to their old stadium it makes me want to puke.
This past spring when my Pistons were in the midst of another long playoff run, I couldn't even get an hour of Pistons talk because 90% of the shows were controlled by tigers off-season and spring training discussions.
That is not a joke. I am serious. It happened.
How can a team that hasn't won a championship in 25 years get precedence over the Pistons, who have won 3 championships in that time AND contend every year?Especially when the Pistons were in the playoffs and the tigers weren't even playing.
I'm sorry if I hurt any of your feelings, but I hate baseball. Always have and always will, and because of the tigers, I can no longer listen to sports talk radio anymore.
Baseball is a game, not a sport. There is nothing athletic about it, and should it not be discussed on a "sports" talk radio show.
We need a forum dedicated to the memory of sports talk radio, as it was before the tigers ruined it.
Brothers Memories
One great thing about having brothers is that you end up doing some cool things together, which end up as great memories. Its those memories that sustain over the years, and the drive to make more new ones that propels us along the journey. Well my brothers (Greg, Tim and Mike) and I had some great times down there at Michigan and Trumbull. One of the best ones was when Greg took us on a Sunday to a doubleheader vs. Cleveland. We stopped at Jack in the Box on Michigan in west Dearborn and bought a bag of cheeseburgers to take to the game. We sat in the centerfield upper deck bleachers and had a great time together. We watched the filming of the Ron Leflore story movie prior to a game against the Red Sox. Even endured a downpour during the game by huddling up under the left field roof. We saw Busby (KC Royals) toss a no-hitter against the Tigers on a frigid April night in 1973 or 74. Tim and I saw one of the final games at Tiger Stadium in September of 1999, just as we had seen one of the final games at Olympia (vs Winnipeg) in 1979. Greg and I somehow convinced our parents to skip school and to go down and try to get a ticket to Game Five (deciding game) of the 1972 playoff game vs Oakland. We got in and saw a classic showdown. And it was the only absence of the year for my brother, ruining his perfect attendance record. But more meaningful than all the great games that we saw were the times that we spent together. The games were an occasion to be together and experience an adventure. And thats what Tiger Stadium means to me...... it was an occasion for adventure! Greg, Tim, Mike we may be living in 3 different states and two different countries but we are bound by these great memories. Thanks for them! Thanks for being great brothers!
Tiger Stadium Memories
I was there in '84. Tigers vs Padres World Series. What a great place, I will never forget Tiger Stadium. Give Ernie whatever he needs to keep that place alive. People always regret when they rid something. If you are over 60, spend it, if you can't spend it, charge it! and call it a day.
Old Stadium, Sad Detroit
To comment on the sentiment below:
"I think we need to preserve some memory of the old stadium. I just don't understand why former players have not come forth to support this effort?"
Maybe because those players would like a location that people would willingly visit instead of a corner in a decrepit wasteland of a city.
Maybe the players deserve a better stadium (and they GOT it with Comerica).
Maybe the players share the thought that a cleared lot is better than a safety hazard or a run down former landmark.
I wonder why nobody wanted to preserve the Train Station, just a few hundred feet away.
I wonder why the Belle Isle zoo wasn't preserved for the sake of our children's education.
I wonder why nobody has proposed a plan to save the Highland Ford plant, or to renovate the Packard plant.
I mean, those are "significant" landmarks too, am I right? Would you even take a trip to the Ford plant if it were open as a historical landmark?
But if the people are leaving Detroit, and nobody visits, who will even appreciate it?
It's sad that people cling to nostalgia even when the city around it is crumbling at the foundations.
Old Tiger Stadium
I think we need to preserve some memory of the old stadium. I just don't understand why former players have not come forth to support this effort? I know many other icons of the past have been torn down in Detroit, but I think the old stadium has more memories, and needs to be remembered for this reason alone. If something is not done with this area it will most likely become another empty lot, grass overgrown, and serving no purpose but to make a couple of bucks for the wrecking crew.
Let us join together and leave a better legacy for the old place is my wish.
Old Parks
My memories of Tiger Stadium are not ones of joy and merriment. My memories of the old tin can are that my home team the Brewers always seemed to have a real tough time winning games in that place. You folks in Detroit shouldn't be sad to see it go. We watched and CHEERED when Milwaukee County Stadium went down. Like your Tiger stadium, it was WAYYYYYYYYY past it's sell by date. I have been to Comerica and it's a beautiful place to watch a game. Not crowded, excellent views, nice breezes inside the stadium. Even our jewel Miller Park doesn't have much of a breeze even with the roof open. Miss the memories, not the house.
Tiger Stadium
Many memories--68 World Series GM 5 Freehan Blocking Plate on Brock, Tigers go on to WIN Series! Gibson's Homerun off Gossage in 84 World Series GM 5, Tigers Win! Jacksons All Star Game Homerun! Fidrych on hot Steamy Night taking curtain call to packed house against Baltimore! McCaullife's game ending DP in 67 on last day, Tigers miss out on playoff game! Final Game at Tiger Stadium ! Bruce Maher taking a foot to the face on end zone blocked punt on Thanksgiving Day against the Packers. Lions Thanksgiving Day Massacre against the Packers! Lem Barneys punt return TD on Monday Night Football! The Detroit High School Championship Game the night of Kennedys Assassination! Playing in a complimentary softball game at the Stadium, and I still have a cup of infield dirt!
Tigrer Stadium memories
Cry Cry Cry. That's all I hear about this old hulking wreck of a stadium. When was the last time there was a game played there? And, are there any honest reasons to go to that stadium, given the horrible neighborhoods that surround the intersection of Michigan and Trumbull?
Detroit lives in a fantasy world that revels in the past. We hold dear the watercolor era of the 50s and 60s, when the automotive industry was on the rise. We open photograph books showing the beauty of Belle Isle, the Vernor's plant and the train station. Did we choose to preserve those icons of Detroit's past? No we did not, but we also did not choose to look forward to see that this is a city that didn't plan for our current economy.
The people of Detroit didn't hesitate to tear down Detroit Dragway, which was a historic location for national drag racing. Nobody shed a tear over losing the Troy, the Gratiot or the Van Dyke drive in movie theaters. The Fox and Hounds, also levelled for development was another historic landmark as were Ted's Drive in, and the Totem Pole.
Detroit sure has a way of hanging onto the garbage (Train station and the Packard plant are two big eyesores at present), while thowing away what might be construed as valuable. If anyoen can honestly tell me there is a business case to "save" the stadium, and people will willingly go there, so be it.
Until that time, knock the derelict stadium down. It hasn't been used in years, and half a stadium is useless in a neighborhood that's as friendly as a DMZ.
Making Money on Stadium
I wouldn't be so sure about there "not being bricks" in the wreckage of Tiger Stadium...
I was lucky enough - back in early '93 - to be invited for a "behind-the-scenes" tour of Tiger Stadium by a friend of mine. His dad was a member of the media and he had spent a few years of his youth as a "runner" in the press box and knew a lot of folks in the Tiger's organization.
We saw the clubhouse, training room, press box, went out onto the field - even though there was a couple inches of snow on the ground, standing next to where home plate was marked; sent a shiver up my spine! Looking out at the outfield walls and the empty bleachers in centerfield...yeah, it was breathtaking even in 35* weather!
This was the off-season when part of the commissary and player's parking lot was taken down and the Tiger Den (?) and Food Court were built.
After our tour, we were invited up into PR Director, Dan Ewald's office - he spent 30-40 minutes telling us stories of Tiger Stadium and the organization. We sat mesmerized by his string of anecdotes - only to be disturbed and interrupted every few minutes by the sound of bulldozers and jackhammers outside in the construction mess.
After about the third interruption, Mr. Ewald turned to us and said (kiddingly) "Sorry for all the noise - did you get your souvenir 'piece' of Tiger Stadium during your tour?"
Everyone else chuckled, but...I put my hand up and said, "No, I hadn't."
When Mr. Ewald realized I was serious - he made a call downstairs to the head of security and the foreman of the construction site - told 'em to give me a hard hat and goggles and let me take whatever I wanted!
When we left - I got my hard hat and goggles and sifted through some of the debris and finally settled on a corner-piece of rubble. This pale-blue prize was angled on both sides and had a very rugged look to it - I had special plans for it.
I took it home and cleaned it up - went to a trophy shop and had a brass plate inscribed for it.
My mom was a Tiger/baseball fan since the late 1940's and was a member of The Tiger Stadium Fan Club and The Mayo Smith Society - this was to be her birthday present in 1993!
My mom's birthday was April 8th - many years, we went to Opening Day for part of her celebration! We always sat in the bleachers and would have a ball - although, back around 1973-ish; my parents had a difficult time explaining the streakers to us kids!?
That piece of concrete was VERY special to my mom - it was probably the least expensive of any birthday gift I'd given to her as an adult.
The brass plate STILL reads to this very day:
"Blossom's VERY OWN piece of Michigan and Trumbull"
We lost mom last December after a series of strokes over a 3+ year period of time.
She loved her Tigers.
That piece of concrete now sits above MY fireplace.
Yeah, Tiger Stadium was a very special place for me - and I'll ALWAYS have a little piece to remember it by!
Green Seats
Nothing better than coming up that lower deck concorse behind the Tigers dugout and being eye level with the playing field - such a great reveal. You were right on top of the action in that park. Loved the sounds of banging the green wood seat up and down to get the rally going. No electronic signs saying 'make some noise' or 'let em hear you' were needed in that place. The most cherished peice of furniture in my house is a set of original green seats complete with two sided figural tiger on the side. Its too bad Ilitch has been so silent on this park. With the money he wasted on Dontrelle Willis and Jacque Jones this year, he could have saved Tiger Stadium for future generations. Instead it's sold for scrap, and will just be another empty lot.
TIGER STADIUM MEMORIES
Just a few of the better memories: - My friends and I riding our bike's to 7 mile and Grand River to catch the bus to the Stadium, we were probably only 13 to 15 years old and our parent's didn't know where we went! Oh, how times have changed, huh? - Trying to outsmart the usher's and get down to the dugout for an autograph.
- Sitting in the bleachers for a couple of bucks on a hot, sunny Saturday afternoon watching the increasingly drunk guy's get increasingly agitated with the player's. Extrememly funny.
- Sitting in Kaline's corner (best seats in the house) and hooting on the poor opposing team's right fielder.
- Sitting with and learning the game from my Dad in the late 60's.
- Sitting with and teaching the game to my son in the late 90's.
- craning my neck around a pole in the last row of section Q to watch the Bird.
- Watching Game 3 in 84 from the bleachers with my Dad who watched the 45 series with his Dad from those same bleachers.
Could list a hundred more, but I'm starting to mist up, some of you understand. See you at the park...
