Magglio Ordonez, Justin Verlander Featured at Detroit Tiger Fest

Detroit Tiger Fans lined up around Comerica Park on a cold January morning in hopes of getting autographs or even glimpses of their favorite Detroit Tiger player. Tiger Fest tickets went on sale in December and sold out in 24 hours, leaving many fans without hope of finding that special 2008 Detroit Tiger preview ticket in their Christmas stocking.

While Tiger Fest began at 11:00 AM for most fans holding those tickets, there was another large group of tiger fans lucky enough to hold an early admission ticket which got them through the gates at 10)) AM while the rest of us stood outside in the cold and waited to get in. The Tigers organization did a great job keeping the cold away from the fans inside the stadium, with heated tents and an insulated concourse, once inside it was easy to forget that it was actually January.Each person entering was given a tri-fold brochure pointing out where autographs were being signed, tours were being given, souvenirs were being sold and other pertinent information. The brochure was easy to read and understand even if you had never been in the stadium before.

At the time I purchased my Tiger Fest ticket, I wasn't really thinking about the autographs I could get, I was really just interested in getting a quick "baseball" fix to help these next couple months move a little quicker, opening day felt so far away. But once I saw the list of players attending the 2008 Tiger Fest, I began dreaming of having Justin Verlander sign my ticket or scorecard from his June 12, 2007 no hitter, which I was lucky enough to attend. I also thought about the remote possibility of seeing Placido Polanco, Pudge Rodriguez or Magglio Ordonez sign my 2006 ACLS Game Program. Would it actually be possible to get Magglios signature on that program? I thought it was too much to ask for, I remember so vividly that crushing walk off home run he sent into left field to beat Oakland and send the Tigers to the 2006 World Series, I thought I would love to have his signature on my program from that game, but I knew the odds would be against me.

There were eight autograph tents set up in different areas of the stadium and, as the brochure told us, the players would sign for one hour and rotate to another tent. As I found out quickly, walking into my chosen autograph area, you could get very excited seeing someone like Kenny Rogers and thinking you would get his autograph, only to find that an hour has passed and you are still only half way through the line. As I continued to stand in line the next player was Dontrelle Willis, a good players autograph to get, I thought, but I didn't really bring anything with me for a new player to sign. My luck though, finally began to turn to good and as they escorted Dontrelle out, I could hear screams of joys coming from the distance. Here I am, now third in line and who is being escorted into the room, none other than Magglio Ordonez. I began shaking and started screaming with the other fans. Magglio had his hair pulled back, was dressed in black and wore the biggest smile as he walked into the room. When I handed him my silver sharpie marker and he laid that signature on my program, I almost began crying, my day was complete, I thought.

I left that autograph tent and found another, one in the upper deck, that didn't seem to hold as long a line. I waited about an hour and received Todd Jones and Andy Van Slyke autographs and I was pretty happy. After all, I had gotten Maggs in my first two and a half hours waiting, these two only took an additional hour to get, so I got back in line in this tent. I waited another half hour and could hear the crowd becoming a bit louder. We could see Justin Verlander walking toward the area from the distance, but there was another autograph area next to the one I was in, so it was possible he was going there. As he walked between the two areas, I kept thinking, turn left..turn left. Justin turned LEFT! I was about to receive Justin Verlanders' autograph and as my new found luck would have it, I did make it to the front of that line and my scorecard from that June 12, 2006 no hitter is now complete.

The Tiger Fest was well heated, well organized and although I really did nothing more than stand in lines for a bit over five hours, I had a wonderfully fulfilling day. If you are a Tiger Fan, don't miss the next one.