Opening Day in Detroit is a pretty big deal. The start of a new baseball season is like an annual holiday here. Signifying the end of another brutal Michigan winter, Opening Day grabs the attention of residents all over Detroit and its surrounding Metro areas. It celebrates our local culture and the beginning of a new baseball season. But why is this unofficial holiday such a celebrated day here in Detroit?
The Tigers will open the 2019 season on Thursday, April 4th against the Kansas City Royals, marking the start of the 118th inaugural season in the American League. For decades, fans enjoyed ballgames at Tiger Stadium (formerly Navin Field and Briggs Stadium) before following the team to its new home at Comerica Park in 2000. The largest crowd at an opening day game in Detroit’s history was on April 6, 1971, when 54,089 fans filled Tiger Stadium to see the Tigers take the field against the Cleveland Indians. The most runs scored in a Tigers opening day event has been 20, in 1993, when they beat the Oakland A’s 20-3. The most runs given up by the Tigers was 13 when Cleveland had a 14-13 come from behind victory in their opening season of 1901 against the Cleveland Indians. According to Pure Michigan, around 30,000 hot dogs are sold at a Detroit Tigers game on average. When looking at the Tiger’s long and storied history, that’s more than 3 million hot dogs consumed on opening day alone! Here’s to a Tigers win and another successful baseball season in Detroit!
