Tiger Fever...Catch It

Tiger Fever, once thought to be completely eliminated, has reappeared in Detroit. The last reported case was documented in the late 1980's. Although some claim their may have been a few infected as late as the early 1990's, but there is no solid evidence of that. However, I am here to report that the rumors are indeed true. Tiger Fever is back in Detroit and is spreading at an alarming, if not unprecedented, rate.

Ok, so it's not exactly breaking news that Detroit has rediscovered the Tigers, but I got a first hand glimpse of the revival Saturday. I was at the old yard new yard Saturday night. Sure, the 40,000 in attendance were a big stinkin' clue that the Tigers might not just be the summer punchline around the Motor City anymore. However, it wasn't just the sellout that was evidence of the latest Tigers craze. The thing that caught my attention was the amount of Tigers apparel both being worn and purchased during the 6-0 pasting of the poor Kansas City Royals.

I was caught off-guard by the amount of Tigers merchandise being adorned by the local and suddenly faithful. It wasn't just your traditional Olde English D stuff, either. Although, there was plenty of that, too. I saw jerseys and t-shirts with the names and numbers of Rodriguez, Ordonez, Granderson, Verlander, Zumaya, Shelton, Robertson and Inge, to name a few. Tigertown has not only warmed up to their baseball team's success, but have apparently embraced their marketing campaign, as well. A large number of fans made it quite obvious just "Who's Your Tiger?".

For a team that's success has been all of three and a half months, I was completely surprised to see so many plunk down so much money on an still relatively unknown product. Honestly, how many of these friends of ours really knew who Curtis Granderson or Joel Zumaya were 365 days ago? Can you name how many of your buddies were debating that Brandon Inge authentic jersey? Sure, after years of sustained success--including championships--Red Wings and now Pistons jerseys dot the Detroit landscape. Yet, with only a winning record in mid-July to their credit, the ballpark was filled with fans proudly wearing their Tiger's name and number.

If the quantity of baseball apparel on display Saturday night is any indication, Tigers merchandise has to be the hot item in The D. I couldn't have counted the bags filled with Tigers related products if I had tried. With the profit from merchandise, frozen daiquiri and eight dollar beer sales on Saturday night alone, the Tigers ought to be able to land Alfonso Soriano and sign him long term. It's fairly obvious that this city has bought into the Tigers--literally.

You know the Tigers must be moving product as both newspapers now promote their Tiger coverage. Local radio is pumping up the Motor City Kitties, too. The Tigers flagship station, WXYT 1270AM (I have no idea what their moniker du jour is), talks about how much they talk about the Tigers when the Tigers aren't playing. Having a total grasp of the obvious, the local media have jumped upon the Tigers bandwagon, as well. No reason to let this unexpected opportunity slide past. (Think TV20, who just happened to sign on for a few games this year, is happy about this?)

In my own place of work, I've seen people come down with Tiger Fever right in front of me. People who have never been to Comerica Park have just gone or are about to make their initial visit. Even those co-workers who could name every Red Wing and admit to not being baseball fans are talking about heading down to the CoPa. People who know I'm kind of a baseball geek are asking me semi-serious baseball questions. This thing is spreading fast.

More wins. More ticket sales. More sellouts. More merchandise sales. More media coverage. More Tiger talk around the old water cooler. Yes, friends, Tiger Fever is back and just about everyone has come down with it.