Minor League baseball games are like going to a carnival. There are all sorts of antics that take place between innings on the field and in the stands. People dressed as giant hot dogs, T-shirts being shot out of air cannons, Jake and Elwood Blues driving on the field in the Blues Mobile and then singing and dancing in front of a sold out crowd of 5,000. You get the picture.
There’s a reason why Minor League baseball employs so many gimmicks before, during and after games: the product on the field needs all the help it can get. But do the Detroit Tigers need to employ silly gimmicks to get people to Comerica Park? After all, the Tigers are in first place and have been most of the season. The team has become one of the best draws in baseball in the past four years, yet the Minor League marketing has reached a whole new level.
The Tigers would be wise to cut out all the goofiness. Not only is it not necessary, it is downright annoying. Elvis night? ’80s night? Blarring rap music between batters? I for one would enjoy the game much more without all the stupid distractions.
Note to the marketing folks at the Tigers: You are one of the most storied franchises in the entire sports world. The Detroit Tigers have a heritage most other teams would kill for. Stop acting like a cheap, single-A team that plays in the swamps of Mississippi. You are in an elite category in baseball with teams like the New York Yankees, Boston Red Sox and the Chicago Cubs. Act your age. You’re 115 years old.
S.K. Russell
I couldn’t agree more. Especially on give-a-way nights. I got my family to the ballpark at 5:45 – a full 80 minutes prior to the start – only to be told that there were no give-a-ways left. This caused great disappointment in my children.
Not even an apology from the Tigers. If you can’t have enough (or misrepresent the total # of items) then don’t do it at all.