We begin our Tiger Tale with this:
I had a free night and asked the hotel if they had a map. How classy, right?
Then we go to this:
I got it for $30 off a scalper. Great seats – field level, 20 rows back off 1st base. I was feeling good, and then…
That moment when you first see the stadium. That’s a big deal to me. It’s genuinely awe-inspiring. There it was – with giant statues of tigers and huge bats. The big lights and sheer scope of it. My bouncy step got that much bouncier.
I went through, got to my seat and check this out…
That’s Miguel Cabrerra not 50 feet away from me. Dynamite, right? OK…look closer. The field seats at Comerica are on a low pitch, which means it’s really hard to see. People’s heads in front of you block your view. A true design flaw if you ask me. But then again, people’s heads in my way was secondary to…
OK, time out. An important lesson for non-baseball fans. This is a cardinal rule at a ballpark.
Do not get up from your seat in the middle of an at-bat. Same goes for returning to your seat. Wait for the at-bat to finish and THEN you can get up/sit down.
Why? Because people (like ME!) are trying to watch the damn game! And for some baffling reason, Tiger’s fans had no idea this rule existed. I was stunned. And getting irrationally furious.
Oh, and the other thing that was happening – EVERYONE was taking selfies. I’ve never seen so many selfies in my life. It was like a selfie flashmob. In fact, the mother in front of me took a selfie of herself and her little girl. Then the little girl started demanding and whining that her mother delete the selfie. And when mom refused, the little girl started fake crying.
I felt like I was losing my mind. After a few innings, I sort of staggered away feeling frazzled. I bought a hot dog and took the escalator up to a higher deck.
Now…let’s look at this photo and tell me what you see?
It’s the shot from my new seat. In fact, as I entered the section, I found 3 guys standing at the back waiting for the at-bat to end before returning to my seat. But back to the photo, because it contains 4 things I loved seeing.
- The kid at the bottom left is wearing a baseball glove. It’s hard to see. Just at the bottom of the frame. He was hoping to catch a pop up and carefully watching the game for his chance
- In the center, a kid is on his dad’s lap and they are keeping score. The dad is teaching his son how to log a game.
- Top of the frame is the view of downtown Detroit – a view I couldn’t see at all from section 118.
- Far right? Oh yeah – that is a real deal baseball mutant. She and her mate were chattering away about the game and having a great time. Pros. She was eating soft tacos and snuffling them down like an anteater. I got her in mid-snort.
What was also nice about this section was the view of the field. I could see what was going on. No heads in my way.
So now…I could give excuses. I had an hour drive back to my hotel and I had to get up at 6 and run an all day workshop. High profile for a big client. And the game was out of reach for the Tigers (down 12-3) and every pitcher just kept walking batters and then they’d switch to another pitcher who would warm up and then walk the next guy.
And then…and then…oh God. OK.
I left. I left before the end of the game. I did. I did that. Here’s a shot of the sunset over the city I shot on my way out.
So…not sure if it’s even valid considering what I just admitted, but my review of Comerica Park is:
- GORGEOUS stadium. Grand and majestic. It feels like you’re entering the Roman Coliseum about to watch something enormous take place.
- Fans suck in the spendy seats. Fans are solid in higher decks. Plus the seats are better.
- Food is nothing special.
NuckolBall 