Pat Caputo: Time To Start Believing In The Detroit Tigers - They've Earned It
There have been times when this town has been absolutely, totally and completely mesmerized and delirious about the Tigers.
When every game captivated and put it into an utter frenzy.
There was a riot in Detroit in 1967. They brought in the National Guard to quell it. 43 people died. 25 square miles of Detroit were destroyed. Racial tensions couldn't have been higher.
In 1968, everybody came together under the cause of the old English "D" as the Tigers rallied night after night right on through October and a World Series victory over the heavily-favored Cardinals.
It happened again in 1984. Once more at a difficult time - at the end of a recession which ripped the auto industry and sent thousands of people to the Sun Belt looking for work. There was a lot of anticipation at the start of the season, but when the Tigers went 35-5 to begin it, people were completely hooked.
2006 presented a rags to riches story. The Tigers hadn't had a winning season in a dozen years. They had lost 119 games just a few seasons before. Then they got to 40 games over .500 at one point, made the postseason as a wildcard entry and knocked off the hated Yankees and Oakland in the playoffs. They did lose the World Series, but complaints were minimal under the circumstances.
It was like none of the above this summer.
