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| Ontario City Shares Detroit’s Thrills (Tigers) and Ills (Auto Industry) | Ontario City Shares Detroit’s Thrills (Tigers) and Ills (Auto Industry) |
| (about 1 hour later) | |
| WINDSOR, Ontario — One of the little oddities of Detroit is that the quickest way to Canada is south, to Windsor, a border town tethered to its more imposing northern neighbor by bridge, tunnel and the Detroit Tigers. | WINDSOR, Ontario — One of the little oddities of Detroit is that the quickest way to Canada is south, to Windsor, a border town tethered to its more imposing northern neighbor by bridge, tunnel and the Detroit Tigers. |
| Windsor, a struggling community of 319,000 with a distinct dual identity, has blue currency, a prime minister and smoked meat sandwiches. But one thing its residents share with their American neighbors, along with a stressed economy, is a love for the Tigers, whose stadium is closer to a foreign country than Yankee Stadium is to most parts of New Jersey. | Windsor, a struggling community of 319,000 with a distinct dual identity, has blue currency, a prime minister and smoked meat sandwiches. But one thing its residents share with their American neighbors, along with a stressed economy, is a love for the Tigers, whose stadium is closer to a foreign country than Yankee Stadium is to most parts of New Jersey. |
| “I live in Canada,” Joe Siddall, the Tigers’ Windsor-born batting practice pitcher, said before Game 3 of the World Series on Saturday. “And I’m closer to Comerica Park than the players.” | “I live in Canada,” Joe Siddall, the Tigers’ Windsor-born batting practice pitcher, said before Game 3 of the World Series on Saturday. “And I’m closer to Comerica Park than the players.” |
| In Windsor, Saturday night is traditionally “Hockey Night in Canada.” But a labor dispute in the N.H.L. has left those arenas dark, and without their national sport to watch, Windsorians turned to their Tigers. Over the weekend, from a Canadian rooftop on the southern shore of the Detroit River, one could see the lights of Comerica Park, barely a mile and a half away, glowing against the imposing glass figure of Detroit’s Renaissance Center. | In Windsor, Saturday night is traditionally “Hockey Night in Canada.” But a labor dispute in the N.H.L. has left those arenas dark, and without their national sport to watch, Windsorians turned to their Tigers. Over the weekend, from a Canadian rooftop on the southern shore of the Detroit River, one could see the lights of Comerica Park, barely a mile and a half away, glowing against the imposing glass figure of Detroit’s Renaissance Center. |
| “Windsor is 95 percent behind the Tigers,” said Jeff Havens, a 35-year-old electrician who wore a Justin Verlander home jersey while watching Game 3 in a Windsor bar called the Dugout Sports Lounge. “I mean, it’s right there. That’s our team.” | “Windsor is 95 percent behind the Tigers,” said Jeff Havens, a 35-year-old electrician who wore a Justin Verlander home jersey while watching Game 3 in a Windsor bar called the Dugout Sports Lounge. “I mean, it’s right there. That’s our team.” |
| Others estimate much lower support because many fans in Windsor and Essex County, the peninsula that reaches down under Detroit, choose national loyalty to Ontario’s Toronto Blue Jays. | Others estimate much lower support because many fans in Windsor and Essex County, the peninsula that reaches down under Detroit, choose national loyalty to Ontario’s Toronto Blue Jays. |
| “When we played the Blue Jays at Tiger Stadium, it was always full of Blue Jays fans,” the former Tigers pitcher Jack Morris said. “I know a lot of them came over from Windsor.” | “When we played the Blue Jays at Tiger Stadium, it was always full of Blue Jays fans,” the former Tigers pitcher Jack Morris said. “I know a lot of them came over from Windsor.” |
| They still do. For most Tigers home games, a convoy of buses from Windsor makes a two-minute crossing through the Detroit-Windsor tunnel, Canada’s only point of entry into the United States that sends visitors in a northerly direction. | They still do. For most Tigers home games, a convoy of buses from Windsor makes a two-minute crossing through the Detroit-Windsor tunnel, Canada’s only point of entry into the United States that sends visitors in a northerly direction. |
| “We live in a different country,” said Dan Hogan, the owner of the Dugout, who goes to Detroit four or five times a week. “But we are really a suburb of Detroit. I can get to the stadium a lot faster than people who come in from the Detroit suburbs.” | “We live in a different country,” said Dan Hogan, the owner of the Dugout, who goes to Detroit four or five times a week. “But we are really a suburb of Detroit. I can get to the stadium a lot faster than people who come in from the Detroit suburbs.” |
| As he spoke, during the middle innings of Game 3, his bar was filled, though not to capacity. Roughly three dozen fans, virtually all of them Windsor natives, tried desperately to coax the Tigers into scoring a run that never came. The Tigers lost to the San Francisco Giants, 2-0, and fell behind by three games to none in the Series. | |
| Hogan said his business was doing “O.K.,” especially with the Tigers in the World Series, but it is not thriving. Unemployment in Windsor, an auto industry town like Detroit, is 9.5 percent, according to City Councilman Drew Dilkens. That is the highest rate in Canada. | |
| “Times are tough,” Hogan said. “Let’s face it: we put all our eggs in one basket with the auto industry. We have the Big Three here, just like Detroit. But we need to diversify.” | “Times are tough,” Hogan said. “Let’s face it: we put all our eggs in one basket with the auto industry. We have the Big Three here, just like Detroit. But we need to diversify.” |
| Dilkens acknowledged that Windsor’s fortunes were linked to Detroit’s, both with the economy and the prospects of the Tigers. | Dilkens acknowledged that Windsor’s fortunes were linked to Detroit’s, both with the economy and the prospects of the Tigers. |
| “We have a saying that when the United States sneezes, Canada catches a cold,” he said. “It’s especially true with us and Detroit. We are reliant on the U.S. for trade and our economy. But we are looking to diversify, and we are promoting the area as a two-nation tourist destination.” | “We have a saying that when the United States sneezes, Canada catches a cold,” he said. “It’s especially true with us and Detroit. We are reliant on the U.S. for trade and our economy. But we are looking to diversify, and we are promoting the area as a two-nation tourist destination.” |
| For years, Windsor was a destination for Michiganders looking to gamble in legalized halls. But since casinos opened in Detroit in 1999, that traffic has faded. Still, because the drinking age in Windsor is 19, it remains a party spot for young Michigan residents who cram the many bars, nightclubs and restaurants that line Ouellette Avenue, including the Dugout. | For years, Windsor was a destination for Michiganders looking to gamble in legalized halls. But since casinos opened in Detroit in 1999, that traffic has faded. Still, because the drinking age in Windsor is 19, it remains a party spot for young Michigan residents who cram the many bars, nightclubs and restaurants that line Ouellette Avenue, including the Dugout. |
| Windsor’s recent efforts to expand tourism and emphasize its connection to Detroit have included this year’s celebrations of the bicentennial of the War of 1812, particularly the Surrender of Detroit, a battle won by an alliance of British and First Nation troops, who held the Americans back. Had the battle gone differently, Windsor might have become part of the United States, and the idea of supporting the Blue Jays today would have seemed absurd. | Windsor’s recent efforts to expand tourism and emphasize its connection to Detroit have included this year’s celebrations of the bicentennial of the War of 1812, particularly the Surrender of Detroit, a battle won by an alliance of British and First Nation troops, who held the Americans back. Had the battle gone differently, Windsor might have become part of the United States, and the idea of supporting the Blue Jays today would have seemed absurd. |
| Two hundred years later, the city government put up banners for the first time recognizing the Tigers’ trip to the World Series. But at a bar called Lefty’s, a lone customer in a Toronto Maple Leafs jacket sat at the bar and chatted with Gavin Ducharme, the 23-year-old bartender, who wore a dark blue T-shirt with the Tigers’ large Gothic D on it. The two of them encapsulated Windsor’s sports dual nationalism. | Two hundred years later, the city government put up banners for the first time recognizing the Tigers’ trip to the World Series. But at a bar called Lefty’s, a lone customer in a Toronto Maple Leafs jacket sat at the bar and chatted with Gavin Ducharme, the 23-year-old bartender, who wore a dark blue T-shirt with the Tigers’ large Gothic D on it. The two of them encapsulated Windsor’s sports dual nationalism. |
| Windsor leans toward the Tigers, the Lions and the Red Wings, but at least for Game 3, there did not seem to be the same citywide passion as there was across the river. A Tigers World Series game created interest, but it did not give the city pause, and no Detroiters were found in Windsor on Saturday, other than two fans from Lansing, Mich., who had tickets to Game 3 but could not find a hotel in Detroit. | Windsor leans toward the Tigers, the Lions and the Red Wings, but at least for Game 3, there did not seem to be the same citywide passion as there was across the river. A Tigers World Series game created interest, but it did not give the city pause, and no Detroiters were found in Windsor on Saturday, other than two fans from Lansing, Mich., who had tickets to Game 3 but could not find a hotel in Detroit. |
| In the 1980s, Morris said, he and his Tigers teammate Kirk Gibson shared a hunting cabin in Tilbury, Ontario, but other than that, Windsor remained as distant as any foreign country despite its proximity. | In the 1980s, Morris said, he and his Tigers teammate Kirk Gibson shared a hunting cabin in Tilbury, Ontario, but other than that, Windsor remained as distant as any foreign country despite its proximity. |
| “We knew it was there, but we never went over there,” Morris said. | “We knew it was there, but we never went over there,” Morris said. |
| Siddall, the batting practice pitcher, who played briefly with the Expos, the Marlins and the Tigers, grew up in Windsor as a devoted Tigers fan. When Detroit signed him in 1998, it was a dream come true to play at Tiger Stadium, where he often went as a boy. | |
| Today, he is one of the only people in baseball who need a passport to get to work every day. He lives in South Windsor, and to go to Comerica Park, he makes a daily commute across the Ambassador Bridge. | |
| “As Canadians, we love it,” Siddall said. “We come here to shop a lot, but the most fun is to come over here for sports. I’m only 20 minutes away. I live closer to Comerica Park than most of the players do. It’s almost like you’re in the same city, even though it’s a different country.” | “As Canadians, we love it,” Siddall said. “We come here to shop a lot, but the most fun is to come over here for sports. I’m only 20 minutes away. I live closer to Comerica Park than most of the players do. It’s almost like you’re in the same city, even though it’s a different country.” |