After the game was over (side note: fastest game I've ever been to -over in less than two hours!!), my friend jokingly suggested we figure out a way to meet the Tigers. A quick search on Google (literally, I just searched "Detroit Tigers," "Hotel," Baltimore") pulled up multiple mentions of the same hotel, and it was less than a mile away. So, we decided it couldn't hurt to go to that hotel's bar, order a drink and see what would happen.
As soon as we got there we knew it was the right place. A very nice hotel, but also there were random people in Tigers jerseys; it seemed obvious they were waiting for something. All of a sudden, the outer perimeter of the hotel was filled with police and security, and a really shabby looking bus pulled up. AND OUT CAME THE DETROIT TIGERS!
Most of them went straight to the hotel elevators, but we got to meet & talk with Brandon Inge, who is an amazing 3rd basement and probably one of the nicest athletes I've ever met. I saw my personal favorite Tiger in the flesh, Alex Avila. While at the bar later, we had a great conversation with their Manager, Jim Leyland. I also saw (but didnt talk to) Gerald Laird, a catcher, and Johnny Damon. We also tried to say hello to their pitcher, Justin Verlander, who was extremely rude and would not even say hi - we werent asking for autographs or even taking pictures, just talked to them all. All and in all, we had a fabulous evening and couldnt believe our luck!
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Alex Avila Brandon Inge |
