Tiger Stadium (Detroit)

Tiger Stadium

The Corner
Former names	Navin Field Briggs Stadium
Location	2121 Trumbull Avenue Detroit, Michigan 48216
Broke ground	1911
Opened	April 20, 1912
Closed	March 15, 2008
Demolished	2008 (partial demolition)
Owner	Detroit Tigers (1912–1977) City of Detroit (1977–present)
Surface	Grass
Construction cost	$300,000 USD
Architect	Osborn Engineering
Capacity	23,000 (1912) 30,000 (1923) 52,416 (1937)
Field dimensions	Left field: 340 ft (104 m) Left-center field: 365 ft (111 m) Center field: 440 ft (134 m) Right-center field: 370 ft (113 m) Right field: 325 ft (99 m) Backstop: 66 ft (20 m)
Tenants
Detroit Tigers (MLB) (1912–1999) Detroit Lions (NFL) (1938–1974) Detroit Cougars (NPSL/NASL) (1967–1968) Little League Baseball (2002) Bud Bowl (2006–2008)

Tiger Stadium (formerly known as Navin Field and Briggs Stadium) is a stadium located in the Corktown neighborhood of Detroit, Michigan. It hosted the Detroit Tigers Major League Baseball team from 1912 to 2000, as well as the National Football League's Detroit Lions from 1938 to 1974. It was declared a State of Michigan Historic Site in 1975 and has been listed on the National Register of Historic Places since 1989. The stadium is nicknamed "The Corner" for its location on Michigan Avenue and Trumbull Boulevard.

In 2008, a portion of the stadium was demolished. Efforts continue to save the remaining portion of the structure, stretching approximately from dugout to dugout. ^[1].

History

Early origins

In 1895, Detroit Tigers owner George Vanderbeck had a new ballpark built at the corner of Michigan and Trumbull avenues. That stadium was called Bennett Park and featured a wooden grandstand with a wooden peaked roof in the outfield and bleachers surrounding the infield. At the time, some places in the outfield were only marked off with rope.

The 20th century

In 1911, new Tigers owner Frank Navin ordered a new steel-and-concrete baseball park on the same site that would seat 23,000 to accommodate the growing numbers of fans. On April 20, 1912, Navin Field was opened, the same day as the Boston Red Sox's Fenway Park. The intimate configurations of both stadiums, both conducive to high-scoring games featuring home runs, prompted baseball writers to refer to them as "bandboxes" or "cigar boxes" (a reference to the similarly intimate Baker Bowl).

Over the years, expansion continued to accommodate more people. In 1935, following the death of Frank Navin, new owner Walter Briggs oversaw the expansion of Navin Field to a capacity of 36,000 by extending the upper deck to the foul poles and across right field. By 1938, the city had agreed to move Cherry Street, allowing left field to be double-decked, and the now-renamed Briggs Stadium had a capacity of 53,000.

Also in 1938, the NFL's Detroit Lions began a relationship that allowed them to host their home games at Briggs Stadium. They would play there through the 1974 season, before moving to the Pontiac Silverdome in suburban Pontiac.

In 1961, new owner John Fetzer took control of the stadium and gave it its permanent name: Tiger Stadium. Under this name, the stadium witnessed World Series championship seasons in 1968 and 1984.

The stadium gained a reputation in the 1970s and 1980s for its aging facilities and obstructed views, but was beloved by local baseball fans for its historic feel. Box and most reserved seats were close to the action. In 1977, ownership of the park transferred from the Detroit Tigers to the City of Detroit. As part of this transfer, the green wooden seats were replaced with blue and orange plastic ones and the stadium's interior, which was green, was painted blue to match.

In 1992, new owner Mike Ilitch began many cosmetic improvements to the ballpark, primarily with the addition of the Tiger Den and Tiger Plaza. The Tiger Den was an area in the lower deck between first and third base that had padded seats and section waiters. The Tiger Plaza was constructed in the old players parking lot and consisted of many concessionaires and a gift shop.

After the 1994 strike, plans began to construct a new park, many campaigned to save the stadium. Plans to modify and maintain Tiger Stadium as the home of the Tigers, known as the Cochrane Plan, were supported by many in the community, but were never seriously considered by the Tigers. Ground was broken for the new Comerica Park during the 1997 season.

On September 27, 1999, the final Detroit Tigers game was held at Tiger Stadium; an 8-2 victory over the Kansas City Royals, capped by a late grand slam by Robert Fick. Fick's 8th inning grand slam hit the right field roof and fell back onto the playing field, where it was retrieved by Tigers personnel. Fick's blast was the final hit, home run, and RBI in Tiger Stadium's history. The whereabouts of the ball are currently unknown. Following the game, an emotional ceremony with past and present Tigers greats was held to mark the occasion. The Detroit Tigers moved to the newly constructed Comerica Park for their 2000 season leaving Tiger Stadium largely unused.

The 21st century

From the departure of the Detroit Tigers in 1999 through early 2006, the city of Detroit spent nearly $4 million maintaining Tiger Stadium.

In the summer of 2000, the HBO movie 61* was filmed in Tiger Stadium. To make the field appear to be Yankee Stadium, the seats were painted green and a third deck and skyline of the Bronx were added through the use of CG. However, in one scene where the Yankees play in Detroit, the stadium "plays" itself. In the credit roll at the end of the film, Yankee Stadium is listed as a character played by Tiger Stadium. Coincidently, it was at Tiger Stadium that Roger Maris hit his first home run of his record-breaking 1961 season. Upon completion of filming of the Yankee Stadium scenes, the seats and ballpark were repainted to their Tiger Stadium colors and appearance.

On July 24, 2001, the day Detroit celebrated its 300th birthday, a Great Lakes Summer Collegiate Game between the Motor City Marauders and the Lake Erie Monarchs was played at Tiger Stadium. It was in an effort by a local sports management company that is seeking to bring a minor-league franchise to Detroit in the Frontier League

In July 2002, the Tigers sponsored a fantasy camp with instructors Jason Thompson and Milt Wilcox. For many, this was the final time that Tiger Stadium was opened to the public for a baseball-related purpose.

Since then, The Corner has been used periodically to videotape special segments, such as the appearance of Denny McLain on Fox Sports Net's Beyond the Glory and a pregame piece for the 2005 Major League Baseball All-Star Game featuring Ernie Harwell.

On Saturday, February 4 and Sunday, February 5, 2006, a tent on Tiger Stadium's field played host to Anheuser-Busch's Bud Bowl 2006^[2]. Among performers at the nightclub-style event was Snoop Dogg^[3]. After several years out of the public eye, the Bud Bowl event led the Detroit Free Press to make the interior of the stadium the feature of a photo series on February 1, 2006^[4]. These photos showed the stadium's deteriorating condition, which included trees and other vegetation growing in the stands. Anheuser-Busch promoted the advertising event as Tiger Stadium's Last Call.

In early 2006, the feature-length documentary Stranded at the Corner was released. Funded by local businessman and ardent stadium supporter Peter Comstock Riley, and directed by Gary Glaser, it earned solid reviews and won 3 Telly awards and 2 Emmy awards for the film's writer and co-producer, Richard Bak (a local journalist and the author of two books about the stadium). It was also shown at the inaugural National Baseball Hall of Fame Film Festival, held in Cooperstown, New York, November 2006^[5].

Tiger Stadium was at the center of a WDIV-TV undercover investigation in summer 2007. The report showed people paying the security guard on duty $20 per person to have unfettered access to the stadium. The people on videotape were entering the park to play softball, consuming alcohol while playing. Hidden camera video also showed people attempting to remove seats and other memorabilia. The reporter was able to gain entry into the stadium by paying the guard, and the guard also offered to sell items (turnstiles) to the undercover reporter. This led to even tighter security around the stadium.

Partial demolition

Center field bleachers of Tiger Stadium during partial demolition.

After years of discussion and debate the demolition of Tiger Stadium began on June 30, 2008, as bulldozers punched a hole through the stadium's north wall.^[6]

The decision to demolish the historic building took several years, during which time demolition was only one of several options for the ballpark.

The City of Detroit rejected several proposals for developing the site. Among the proposals were plans to convert Tiger Stadium into condominiums, a jail, and a Wal-Mart shopping center^[3]. Another rejected plan involved converting parts of the stadium into residential lofts. Still another apparently rejected plan, floated by a Detroit area financier, would have reconfigured the stadium to its Navin Field size and layout, as part of a development which would also have included a museum, shops, and conference space^[7]. Along with this plan was included the potential to bring a minor-league baseball team to Detroit. All of these proposals were rejected.

Demolition finally appeared inevitable on June 15, 2006, when Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick announced that Tiger Stadium would be demolished in the following year. As it happened, demolition would take longer than Kilpatrick predicted.

On December 18, 2006 the Detroit Economic Growth Corporation (DEGC) hosted a walk-through for potential bidders on a project to remove assets from Tiger Stadium that qualify as "memorabilia" and to sell these items in an online auction. Bids were due on January 11, 2007, and the winning bidder was instructed in the Request for Proposals that removal of the items (i.e. seats, signs) should be undertaken without harming the Stadium's structure. Once the Stadium was stripped of seating, signage, and other items which could yield income for the City of Detroit at auction, demolition was expected to begin. ^[8] According to individuals familiar with the meeting between potential bidders and the DEGC, all items that are non-structural (i.e. support columns) would be available for auction except for the following items: the foul poles, the center field flagpole, the auxiliary scoreboards along the first and third base lines, and the neon "TIGER STADIUM" lettering.

In March 2007, demolition plans were put on hold as the City of Detroit worked to bring local Corktown residents into the decision-making process to determine the stadium's fate^[9].

On June 7, 2007 the DEGC approved a plan to demolish the stadium after a memorabilia auction. The plan will go to the City Council for approval in July 2007^[10]. The June 2007 announcement from DEGC seemed to settle the longstanding matter of what would happen to the old and abandoned stadium. It followed several other proposed plans and even some official announcements about the stadium's fate, some of which appeared contradictory or speculative. Items were auctioned via the Internet by Schneider Industries.^[11]

On July 27 2007, Detroit City Council approved a plan to demolish Tiger Stadium before September 2008. They did not vote to give control of the project to the DEGC^[12]. In October, 2007, commensurate with the removal and sale of seats and other memorabilia, the neon lettering "TIGER STADIUM" on the offices at the corner of Michigan and Trumbull were removed, as were the tiles above the office entrance on Trumbull Ave. which contained the Tigers' logo. These items were not auctioned, but were reportedly removed and donated to the Detroit Historical Society.

In November 2007, the DEGC issued a request for proposals from potential demolition companies who will demolish most of Tiger Stadium. The preliminary plans included in the DEGC's request for proposals show that the lower deck of the stadium will remain from just beyond the first base dugout to just beyond the third base dugout. The upper deck in that section, along with the upper and lower decks for the remainder of the stadium, will be demolished. The elevator tower at the corner of Michigan and Cochrane is to remain, as will the broadcast booth behind home plate. The seats have all been removed from the portion of the park which will be saved, with new seats installed at a later date^[13].

In November 2007, most of the lower deck seating was removed and sold as part of the October 2007 auction of memorabilia, many seats in the upper deck remain. Those seats will be discarded after the Stadium is demolished. The "TIGER STADIUM" lettering has been removed from the roof behind home plate and that the scoreboards on the base of the left field fence and on the facade of the upper deck along the first and third base lines have been removed.

The DEGC was scheduled to award a contract for the Stadium's demolition in January 2008. A demolition contract was awarded/announced on April 22, 2008. Wrecking crews tore the first hole as demolition began on June 30, 2008 in the wall behind what used to be bleachers, on the Fisher West service drive near the intersection of Trumbull Avenue. The demolition companies will not be paid from the City for their work, but will instead sell the scrap metal to earn revenue from the project. The demolition of the left field stands opened up the stadium for the first time in decades on July 9, 2008. The plans to keep the dugout-to-dugout portion of the stadium are contingent upon the Old Tiger Stadium Conservancy being able to raise $369,000 by August 1, 2008, in order to pay for costs including maintenance of the site and security over the portion of the ballpark that is set to be left standing and prove it has a $12 million to $15 million financial plan to save the baseball diamond, 3,000 seats and an area that would house Hall of Fame Tiger's broadcaster Ernie Harwell's vast collection of sports memorabilia. ^[14].

Demolition of Tiger Stadium began on July 9, 2008.^[15]. As of July 10, 2008, the Detroit city official responsible for the site's maintenance has indicated that the field, foul poles, and flag pole will be preserved.^[16] Partial demolition was completed in September leaving only the dugout to dugout portion of the stadium. The OTSC has until March 1st 2009 to raise 15.5 Million to build a museum. By 10/7/08 the Tiger Stadium conservancy has raise the 150 thousand for the first of two payments in order to purchase the remaining stadium from the city of Detroit. However they must raise another 69 thousand by 10/10/08 in order to stay the wrecking ball. ^[17] Having done that, the next deadline to save the reminder of the ballpark is December 1 when a site plan, architect plans and funds to cover plans are due.^[18][19]

Historic moments

At the Corner on July 13, 1934, Babe Ruth hit his 700th career home run. As noted in Bill Jenkinson's The Year Babe Ruth Hit 104 Home Runs, the ball sailed over the street behind the then-single deck bleachers in right field, and is estimated to have traveled over 500 feet on the fly.

Ruth also had a good day in Detroit earlier in his career, on July 18, 1921, when he hit what is believed to be the verifiably longest home run in the history of major league baseball. It went to straightaway center, as many of Ruth's longest homers did, easily clearing the then-single deck bleacher and wall, landing almost on the far side of the street intersection. The distance of this blow has been estimated at between 575 and 600 feet on the fly.

On May 2, 1939, an ailing New York Yankees first baseman Lou Gehrig voluntarily benched himself at Briggs Stadium, ending a streak of 2,130 consecutive games. Due to the progression of the disease named after him, it proved to be the final game in his career.

The stadium hosted the 1941, 1951, and 1971 MLB All-Star Games. All three games featured home runs. Ted Williams won the 1941 game with an upper deck shot. The ball was also carrying well in the 1951 and 1971 games. Of the many homers in those games, the most often replayed is Reggie Jackson's literally towering drive to right field that hit so high up in the light tower that the TV camera lost sight of it, until it dropped to the field below. Jackson dropped his bat and watched it sail, seemingly astonished at his own power display.

On April 7, 1986, Dwight Evans hit a home run on the first pitch of the Opening Day game, for the earliest possible home run in an MLB season (in terms of innings and at bats, not dates)

Other uses

Tiger Stadium was home to the Detroit Lions from 1938 to 1974 when they dropped their final Tiger Stadium game to the Denver Broncos on Thanksgiving Day. The football field ran mostly in the outfield from the right field line to left center field parallel with the third base line. The benches for both the Lions and their opponents were on the outfield side of the field. (A "possession" symbol, with its light bulbs, for football games could still be seen many years later on the left field auxiliary scoreboard.)

The stadium was depicted in Tiger Town, a 1983 made-for-television baseball movie starring Roy Scheider, and also Sparky Anderson with a small role, and (as Briggs Stadium) in the 1980 feature film Raging Bull where the stadium was the site of two of Jake LaMotta's championship boxing matches. Tiger Stadium was also seen in the film Hardball starring Keanu Reeves, Renaissance Man with Danny DeVito and in the aforementioned film 61*, where it "played" the part of Yankee Stadium as well as itself.

In the film 61*, Tiger Stadium is shown painted blue, with blue and orange seats, but that was its appearance after a renovation in the late 1970s. In the year 1961, the stadium and the seats were painted dark green.

On June 28, 1996, American Hard Rock band, KISS, performed their first show for their Reunion tour at Tiger Stadium in front of 39,867 fans, with Alice_In_Chains and Sponge opening.

In February 2006, Tiger Stadium's field was used for the 2006 Anheuser-Busch Bud Bowl advertising event, part of the unofficial Super Bowl XL festivities.

It has been postulated by numerous residents that the stadium could be used and converted into a soccer arena, allowing for a potential MLS franchise, but lack of support by government officials has essentially killed this idea.

After the Tigers moved, Michigan&Trumbull, LLC. rented the stadium for four separate baseball games (Collegiate Wood Bat League games, vintage base ball games, and a women's baseball game; the women's game was played between the Detroit Danger Women's Baseball Club and the Toronto All-Stars and was hosted by the WBL (Women's Baseball League, Inc.) on August 11, 2001. The Danger beat the All-Stars, 3-2. The women's baseball game become the first-ever all-women's baseball game played at Tiger Stadium in its entire history).

Northern Irish professional soccer club Glentoran called the stadium home for two months in 1967. The Glens, as the team from Belfast are known played under the name Detroit Cougars as one of several European teams invited to the States during their off/close season to play in the United Soccer Association.

Unique features

Tiger Stadium had a 125 ft (38 m) tall flagpole in fair play, to the left of dead center field near the 440 ft (134 m) mark. The same flag pole was originally to be brought to Comerica Park, but this never took place. A new flagpole in the spirit of Tiger Stadium's pole was positioned in fair play at Comerica Park until the left field fence was moved in closer prior to the 2003 season.

When the stadium closed, it was tied with Fenway Park as the oldest ballpark in Major League Baseball the way the dates are normally reckoned. The two stadiums opened on the exact same date in 1912. Taking predecessor Bennett Field into account, this was the oldest site in use in 1999.

The right-field upper deck overhung the field by 10 feet (3 m), prompting the installation of spotlights above the warning track.

Supposedly due to then-owner Walter Briggs' dislike of night baseball, lights were not installed at the stadium until 1948. The first night game at the stadium was held on June 15, 1948. Among major league parks whose construction predated the advent of night games, only Chicago's Wrigley Field went longer without lights (1988).

Unlike Comerica Park and many other modern stadiums, Tiger Stadium featured an upper deck bleacher section that was separated from the rest of the stadium. Chain link fence separated the bleachers from the reserved sections and was the only section of seating not covered by at least part of the roof. The bleachers had their own entrance, concession stands, and restrooms.

Tiger Stadium saw exactly 11,111 home runs, the last a right field, rooftop grand slam by Detroit's Robert Fick as the last hit in the last game played there^[20].

There were over 30 home runs hit onto the right field roof over the years. It was a relatively soft touch compared to left field, with a 325 foot foul line and with a roof that was in line with the front of the lower deck. In left field, it was 15 feet farther down the line, and the roof was set back some distance. Only four of the game's most powerful right-handed sluggers (Harmon Killebrew, Frank Howard, Cecil Fielder and Mark McGwire) reached the left field rooftop.

Like other older baseball stadiums such as Wrigley Field, Tiger Stadium offered "obstructed view" seats, some of which were directly behind a steel support beam; while others in the lower deck had sight lines obstructed by the low-hanging upper deck.

Tom Monaghan, a former owner of the Detroit Tigers and owner of Dominos Pizza, once had a helicopter deliver pizza to those working in the press box.

Modern luxury-style suites were practically non-existent at Tiger Stadium, and the lack of revenue was cited as one of the reasons for moving the Tigers franchise to a new stadium.

Sports Illustrated featured a poll of major league baseball players asking which stadium is the favorite to play in. Tiger Stadium usually placed within the top 5.

Green Cathedrals quoted Joe Falls, sportswriter for The Detroit Free Press, who used to say that there was a sign over the visitors' clubhouse entrance that read "No visitors allowed".

Artist Gene Mack, who drew a series of pictures of major-league parks, mentioned a bone that Ty Cobb used to "bone" his bats as part of his care for them. The bone stayed in the clubhouse after he left the Tigers in 1926, and, indeed, after he retired in 1928. In his autobiography, he noted that the last time he visited the Tigers' clubhouse (he died in 1961), that bone was still in use. Where it is now is anyone's guess.

"Michigan and Trumbull," a song by Michigan indie-pop band The Original Brothers and Sisters of Love, pays tribute to Tiger Stadium in its last season.

External links

• A site dedicated to saving the dugout to dugout area of Tiger Stadium
• A site dedicated to preserving Tiger Stadium
• A documentary on the battle to save Tiger Stadium
• Friends of Tiger Stadium
• Past Tigers Venues
• A site dedicated to remembering Tiger Stadium, with updated pictures of the demolition
• Tiger Stadium Demolition News & Videos
• USGS aerial photo
• Google Maps Aerial
• Information on the sale of salvageable Tiger Stadium memorabilia to the public before the demolition
• A recent collection of photos

References