Happy Birthday Tiger Stadium

"April 20, 1912 —the day should be trumpeted. There should be balloons and bunting. A celebration. A cake. There is none of that. Just silence. They would prefer we forget.

"It opened in the era of ragtime music and black Model T's. Airplanes were still aeroplanes. Mary Pickford was becoming a star, and Jim Thorpe soon would be. The First World War had yet to begin and women wouldn't get the right to vote for eight years. It was a time when fans wore sports coats and dress hats and paid to stand in the outfield, separated from the players not by a home-run fence but by a rope that defined the playing area."

           — Tom Stanton, The Final Season

Flint Postcards: Atwood Stadium Baseball Diamond

Detroit Tiger Diehards

Tigers No-Hit the Blue Jays

Detroit's Justin Verlander throws another no hitter.

Flint Postcards: Baseball at Athletic Park

Thanks again to Tom Pohrt, who is digging deep into his Flint archives.

Update: According to The Picture History of Flint, Athletic Park was located "near downtown" and opened in 1907 and was demolished in 1955. (Just guessing here but there's a good chance it was replaced by a parking lot. Ha ha.) A photo in the picture history clearly shows residential houses visible along the third-base line.

Flint Photos: Atwood Stadium 1939

Spring Training

Now that the Olympics are over, let's set our sights on spring training. This should help...

Flint Photos: 1980 Whittier Baseball Team

Who can spot the future major leaguer? Thanks to Andrew Gauthier, a Haskell Community Center veteran, for this photo.

Granderson Headed to the Yankees

Are the Tigers really going to let Curtis Granderson go to the Yankees? ESPN says they are.

Update: Yes, it's true.

Another Update: What do the Tigers get out of this deal with the Yankees and Diamondbacks? Tommy Rancel at Beyond the Box Score writes:

The Tigers are giving up the biggest piece in the deal in Granderson, and downgrade a bit in the interim, but gain four cheap and controllable pieces that should help for seasons to come. Detroit has made no secret about wanting to shed payroll, and clearing at least $25.75 million guaranteed to Granderson helps accomplish that goal. They also save on Edwin Jackson's impending ERA inflated arbitration raise. They receive Max Scherzer as the big prize in return. Not only can he fill Jackson's spot in the rotation immediately, but stands a decent chance of upgrading it for much less.

The Tigers could also immediately turn to soon-to-be 23-year-old Austin Jackson to fill Granderson's spot in the field. There will no doubt be a significant dip in production overall, but Jackson stands to be at least average in centerfield and brings speed to the lineup. As is the case with most young players, he strikes out a lot and hasn't mastered the art of walks, but for the league minimum he could provide a nice value in Granderson's absence.

The other two pieces, Schlereth and Coke, will help shore up a Tigers pen than stands to lose Brandon Lyon and Fernando Rodney to free agency. Both pitchers are lefties, and neither are regarded as a future relief ace, but both stand to be average at least and more importantly cheap and controllable.

Tigers Maul the Indians

Let's enjoy it while we can...Tigers in first place in the AL Central after a sweep of the Indians.

The Bird is Gone

Mark "The Bird" Fidrych, a wonderful diversion from the Tigers' struggles in the '70s, is dead at age 54.

Opening Day Win

The Tigers crushed the Rangers 15-2 on Opening Day at Comerica Park. Go here for Detroit Free Press photographer Julian H. Gonzalez's slideshow of the Tigers first home game of 2009.

Dying for Michigan

Have you ever been sitting around after a few beers and said to yourself: "I wonder how many Major League Baseball players kicked the bucket in the Great Lake State?" I know I have. Many times.

Or maybe you mention that you're from Flint to a hardcore baseball fan and they ask, "Didn't Red Bluhm die in Flint?" Well, thanks to Baseball Almanac, a website that proves once again there's nothing too obscure to find a place on the internet, you now have the knowledge to quickly reply: "Oh, you mean the Red Bluhm who went hitless in his only major league at bat for the Red Sox in 1918? Yeah, he's buried in Sunset Hills Cemetery."

Of course, not even the Baseball Almanac can explain what the hell Norm Cash was doing on Beaver Island when he died there in 1986.

Detroit Tiger Omens

The gods seem determined to remind me that after all the years of suffering, the Tigers really are good, and this year they could be great. Farley's, my favorite coffee shop in San Francisco, ushers in spring training every year with a great display of baseball paraphernalia. This afternoon I strolled in and locked eyes on the olde English D near the door, emblazoned on a baseball shaped cup suitable for Stroh's, provided you drink your beer with a straw. I think it's a good omen.