DVD Review: ‘The Essential Games of the Detroit Tigers’

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CHICAGO – Timed perfectly for both the start of the 2010 Major League Baseball season and with Father’s Day only a few months away, MLB’s “The Essential Games of the Detroit Tigers” box set is the perfect gift idea for the member of your family who follows America’s pasttime, even if they’re not the biggest fan of one of the most popular sports teams of the last century.

HollywoodChicago.com DVD Rating: 4.0/5.0
DVD Rating: 4.0/5.0

Baseball has been played in Detroit since 1901 and featured such legendary stars of the sport as Ty Cobb, Hank Greenberg, Al Kaline, Kirk Gibson, Hal Newhouser, Mickey Lolich, Lou Whitaker, Alan Trammell, Justin Verlander, and Miguel Cabrera. The Detroit Tigers have been a part of hundreds of memorable games, four of which have been deemed “essential” by “Major League Baseball Productions” and included in their entirety in a spectacular box set.

Selected by readers of tigers.com, at least two of the games included are obvious-but-excellent choices: the final two games of the last two World Series won by the team: the fifth game of both the 1968 and 1984 annual finales. The other two games are the last one at the legendary Tiger Stadium in 1999 and the game from the American League Championship Series that shocked the sport by sending the team to the World Series in 2006.

The Essential Games of the Detroit Tigers was released on DVD on April 6th, 2010.
The Essential Games of the Detroit Tigers was released on DVD on April 6th, 2010.
Photo credit: A&E Home Video

Synopsis:

Disc 1: 1968 World Series Game 5 vs. St. Louis Cardinals; October 7th, 1968
“Mickey Lolich finished off a complete game with eight scoreless innings, and Al Kaline led a Tigers rally in the sixth inning.”

Disc 2: 1984 World Series Game 5 vs. San Diego Padres; October 14th, 1984
“The Tigers pounced early and late behind Kirk Gibson and clinched the World Series championship.”

Disc 3: Final Game at Tiger Stadium vs. Kansas City Royals; September 27th, 1999
“The Tigers beat the Royals 8-2 in the final game played at Tiger Stadium, home of the Tigers from 1912-1999.”

Disc 4: 2006 ALCS Game 4 vs. Oakland Athletics; October 12th, 2006
“Magglio Ordonez’s 2-out, 3-run walk-off home run caps a Tigers comeback and sends them to the World Series.”

As for the technical specs, they’re pretty predictable although the 1968 game looks even worse than you might imagine; almost as if it’s being projected on a wall and being filmed with a camcorder. The other games are more watchable, as the technology developed, but it’s almost appropriate that the legends playing that first game look nearly ghost-like. Each game runs a little over two hours with their commercials excised.

As for special features, the set includes dozens of other brief highlights including footage of Mark Fidrych’s 1976 complete game, other games from the 1984 postseason, 1987 division-clinching and ALCS, opening day of Comerica Park in 2000, more moments from the 2006 postseason, Justin Verlander’s 2007 no-hitter, and more.

“The Essential Games of the Detroit Tigers” is a detailed, fantastic box set at a very reasonable price point (under $25) that should serve as a great kick start to the new decade of baseball and a great memento of the last century.

‘The Essential Games of the Detroit Tigers’ is released by A&E Home Video. It was released on DVD on April 6th, 2010. It is not rated and runs over 9 hours.

HollywoodChicago.com content director Brian Tallerico

By BRIAN TALLERICO
Content Director
HollywoodChicago.com
brian@hollywoodchicago.com

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