As I get older there are things about growing up that have stuck with me through time. One of those memories is my late father taking me to my first baseball game at Tiger Stadium way back in 1968 to see them take on the Washington Senators. I remember today how huge the place looked, the sounds, eating hotdogs (best hotdog ever) and just how exciting and alive the stadium was. Earl Wilson was pitching that day for Detroit and I remember getting a program and trying to keep score on it like my dad showed me to. I remember hoping a foul ball came our way (it didn't) and while not completely understanding what was going on I knew it seemed very important. My dad, like me today, wasn't a huge baseball fan, but we had fun and the I remember the Tigers beat the Senators on a pinch-hit, walk-off home run in exrra innings by the late, great Gates Brown. It was so exciting!
Tonight I am taking my nine year old son to his first baseball game at Progressive Field here in Cleveland. While Tommy and my wife will be sporting Indians gear, I'll be representing the Tigers in section 130, row V, along with hopefully more than a few of my fellow Michiganders. Verlander's on the bump and it's Omar Visquel jersey night so the place should be packed and rocking. Hopefully he remembers tonight when he's 54 as fondly as I do my first game today.
Go Tigers!
Edit: Well that's going to be hard to top. That game had just about everything a nine year old first time fan could want. Great pitching, back and forth action, home runs, a ninth inning comeback from the home team, extra innings and a win for the good guys. And Fireworks!!! It doesnt get much better than that and he (and I) had an absolute blast.
PS: You'll note that we "split the dfference" in Tommy's clothing. A Tigers hat for dad and an Indians shirt for mom but trust me, the boy was 100% Tigers in his cheering!