The Corner of Michigan and Trumbull

In 2000, Marty and I went to Detroit to see one of the final games at Tiger Stadium. It was the Mets and Brewers facing off, in a late-season match-up that really didn't mean anything in the standings, but meant everything to the fans in attendance. One of the great old ballparks was going away after seventeen more games.

To be frank, it didn't have to. Tiger Stadium, as far as I could tell, was just as viable as Fenway Park or Wrigley Field. (I prefer Tiger Stadium to Fenway, to be even more frank. Send your flaming e-mail my way.) But the owners were bound and determined to get a new ballpark, so they built Comerica Park down the road, and left Tiger Stadium to rust.

The ultimate fate of Tiger Stadium is a sore spot for Motor City residents and city council folk. There's been little activity there since the park's closure outside Billy Crystal's crew filming '61*' there in 2001, using it as a stand-in for old Yankee Stadium with CGI enhancements.

This weekend, the Super Bowl plays at Ford Field in Detroit, and Budweiser leased out the park for two nights. It's an invitation-only pair of concerts, with Snoop Dogg on Friday night and 3 Doors Down on Saturday. The only baseball being played will be by costumed production flaks tossing a ball around in the outfield.

I'm sure the parties will be a huge hit, but I would rather be one of the wonks getting to play catch on that hallowed ground.