Field of Dreams

Yesterday, eight of us went to Comerica Park to watch the Detroit Tigers battle the Tampa Bay Rays. Detroit won the contest 4-3. On certain days, the Tigers allow children to go onto the field to run the bases after the game. Sunday happened to be one of those days. Jacob has always been eager to take part in this activity, but the line to participate has usually been way too long. This time, he and Jim left our seats before the top of the ninth inning to get a jump on the rest of the kiddie crowd. Adam, Nancy, Richie, Steve, Tree, and I decided to wait in our upper deck section when the game ended to watch the kids on the field and to snap a picture of Jacob rounding the bases.

As the six of us sat there biding our time, an extremely overzealous usher repeatedly informed us that we had to go wait in the lower deck. The testy fellow even threatened to get security if we did not leave immediately. (We did not go, he did not call security.) The entire situation was baffling, not only because in the past we have been allowed to stay in our seats and finish food & drink and chat with friends, but also because in reality, the game had only been over for about 15 minutes. A different, more polite usher, came over to us and announced that it was time for "sweeping." I scanned the upper deck and noted, "Uh, nobody is sweeping up here," to which he replied, "We're sweeping the fans out." (Ha - good one!) The ushers were obviously just doing their jobs to rid the area of fans so they themselves could go home, but I was concerned that if we left our location, we might miss Jacob's base running during our trek down the stairs. We obediently, albeit reluctantly, hurried to the lower deck to see the never-ending line of kids, and accompanying parents, continue to pour onto the field.

After a half hour had passed and we didn't see Jacob, we contacted Jim on his cell phone to ask where they were in the queue. We couldn't believe that they were still halfway around the stadium from the entrance to the field. Where in the world did all of these children come from? Steve joked that someone must have dropped busloads of kids off at the ballpark just for the base running event. Seriously, it seemed as if 10,000 kids had filed onto the field in front of our eyes, and Jacob still had hundreds more ahead of him before it was his turn. Jim quipped that the thousands in front of them must have been standing in line since the fourth inning or something. Base running is apparently a hugely popular activity, and after Jacob had his chance, he proclaimed that it was very much worth the wait. Although we saw hundreds of patient parents and children still in line in the stadium as we left, we happily noticed no crowds or traffic jams outside, as by this time, the game had been over for almost an hour.

Jacob (circled in red) dashes from first base to second.