Tigers vs Braves: A Blowout Loss, But Still a Win in the Stands
Sometimes baseball reminds you that it’s about more than the scoreboard. Last night in Detroit, the Braves ran away with the opener against the Tigers — and yet, for me and my son, the night was still one to remember.
A Rough Start — And We Missed It
We knew this series opener felt like a must-win if the Tigers were going to set the tone. My son and I grabbed a drink before first pitch, figuring we might miss a batter or two. Instead, we missed the entire top of the first — and that turned out to be the game. Atlanta put up six runs off Charlie Morton before fans even settled into their seats. By the time we found ours, the hole was too deep for Detroit to climb out of.
Ticket Trouble
In truth, the night was off track before the first pitch. My son bought our tickets last minute on SeatGeek, and when we scanned in, the usher told us, “Uh, I’m sorry, these are for tomorrow’s game.” We thought we could exchange them, but because they were third-party tickets, the box office couldn’t do a thing. At that point, the smart move would have been to cut our losses and wait for Saturday. Instead, we doubled down and bought two mezzanine tickets to see the Tigers try to battle back. Spoiler alert: they didn’t.
Not Much Fight
Detroit’s bats never woke up. The lone highlight was a “Tork Bomb” from Spencer Torkelson, but otherwise the offense was lifeless, and the pitching shaky. Final score: Braves in a runaway. The Tigers aren’t going to compete down the stretch unless they figure out how to string hits together and get stability on the mound.
Elsewhere in the division, Cleveland took care of Minnesota, tightening the race even further. The Guardians continue to lurk just 2.5 games behind Detroit. With only eight games left on the schedule, the Tigers’ magic number to clinch sits at seven. Every loss shrinks the margin for error, and if the offense doesn’t wake up soon, the Central could come down to the very last series.
The Real Win
But here’s the thing — even though the game was as lopsided as it gets, it didn’t ruin our night. My son was able to resell the Saturday tickets and even turn a profit. And as we sat there in the mezzanine, watching a blowout unfold, we did what we’ve always done: talked baseball, had a couple of drinks, and caught up on life. Baseball has always been our bond, and no matter the score, we both walked out of the ballpark with a win.
