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Wednesday, 11 October, 2006 9:50 PM
Detroit
Metro Convention & Visitors Bureau Welcomes Baseball Fans for
Detroit Tigers American League Championship Series
DETROIT -- The Detroit Metro Convention & Visitors
Bureau (DMCVB) welcomes baseball fans to Detroit to rally for the
red-hot Detroit Tigers in their quest for the American League Championship
at Comerica Park this weekend against the Oakland A's. Fans packed
Comerica Park and local sports bars last weekend decked in team
gear waving Tigers-orange rally towels to support their team, and
the celebration continues.
"The
Detroit Tigers' winning 2006 season has elevated our region's image,
attitude and had a positive impact on metro Detroit's hospitality
and tourism industry. We're thrilled to see the Tigers advance to
the next round," says Larry Alexander, DMCVB President &
CEO.
From
providing volunteers for "Rally Monday" at Comerica Park
Oct. 2, to hosting worldwide media this year and at the 2005 All-Star
Game at Comerica Park, the DMCVB is rooting for its team and boosting
Detroit's pride and image.
Dale
Petroskey, President, National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum
in Cooperstown, New York, and a metro Detroit native, sums it up
well: "When the Tigers are exciting and winning, life around
Detroit is just a little better, the sun shines a little brighter,
people are a little friendlier, and people are just happier and
more optimistic."
The
DMCVB's Alexander adds, "Tigers' fans span generations, and
baseball is in their blood. Like Detroiters, the players and fans
are passionate about what they do: they work hard, they have fun,
and they never give up. Baseball has been a hallowed tradition for
more than 100 of Detroit's 305-year history, and it's great to see
the Tigers in the American League Championship Series."
The
DMCVB also worked with Sue Marx Films to produce a public service
announcement starring Detroit Tiger Ivan "Pudge" Rodriguez;
Detroit Red Wing Chris Chelios; and Robert Porcher, III, former
Detroit Lion and Chairman of the Detroit Metro Sports Commission.
Its goal is to encourage locals and visitors to explore downtown
Detroit to see the positive new development.
The
30-second spot is now airing at Comerica Park, Ford Field, Joe Louis
Arena and on local TV. As Porcher says in the spot, "If you
haven't looked at Detroit lately, look again." In addition
to being local sports celebrities, Porcher and Chelios have invested
in Detroit by opening popular restaurants, which include Seldom
Blues Restaurant and Supper Club and Cheli's Chili Bar.
Olympia
Entertainment also hosted "Foxtown Tigers Train" trips
where fans traveled by Amtrak train from area suburbs Pontiac, Birmingham
and Royal Oak and boarded D-DOT trolley-style buses to and from
Comerica Park for four games this year. The train experience was
a hit with fans.
Since
2004, metro Detroit hosted a string of marquee sporting events:
the Ryder Cup Matches, 2004; MLB All-Star Game, 2005; and Super
Bowl XL, 2006.
For
details about metro Detroit, visit: http://www.visitdetroit.com/
. Detroit Tigers: http://www.detroittigers.com/
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Tigers
and Mets favored to meet in World Series
Sportsbook.com
offers odds on AL and NL Championship Series
Source:
Sportsbook.com
NEW
YORK -- Another post-season appearance, another post-season
disappointment for the Bronx Bombers. But New York baseball fans
can rejoice in the fact that a local team still has a shot at playing
for the World Series. The New York Mets, fresh off a three-game
sweep of the LA Dodgers, head into their NL Championship Series
as a strong favorite against the St. Louis Cardinals. The Mets are
listed at -190 to win the series at Sportsbook.com, the world's
largest online sportsbook and casino.
If things
play out according to the odds makers' lines, the Mets are likely
to face the surprising Detroit Tigers in the World Series. Detroit,
coming off one of the most improbable seasons in recent memory,
finished off the Yankees three games to one. After giving up a seemingly
insurmountable lead in the AL Central Division and sneaking into
the playoffs as a wild card team, Detroit rediscovered its groove
and is now not only a -115 favorite to topple the Oakland A's in
the AL Championship Series, they also carry top odds to win the
World Series.
Baseball
has gone retro with three of the four teams still in the hunt vying
for their first World Series title since the Reagan Administration.
The Mets are a 9-5 bet to win their first World Series since 1986,
followed by the Tigers, winners last in 1986, at 2-1. St. Louis,
World Series champs in 1982 are the long shot at 4-1. At least Oakland
fans can take solace in the fact that their team managed to win
a title during the Bush Sr. Administration, back in 1989. The A's
are a 5-2 bet to win it this year.
"It's
going to be a great World Series no matter who gets there,"
said Alex Czajkowski, Sportsbook.com. "You've got a team from
the biggest market in the country, a Cinderella team in Detroit
and two of the more historical franchises in the game in St. Louis
and Oakland all fighting for the championship. This is why everybody
loves baseball in October and why everybody bets on the playoffs."
AL
Championship Series odds:
Detroit -115
Oakland -105
NL Championship Series odds:
NY Mets -190
St. Louis +160
Odds to win the World Series:
NY Mets 9-5
Detroit 2-1
Oakland 5-2
St. Louis 4-1
About Sportsbook.com:
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been leading the online gaming industry since 1996. Dwarfing its
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products have been featured on CBS 60 Minutes, CNN, ESPN, Wall Street
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Sportsbook.com
is the flagship brand for Sportingbet PLC, , the world's leading
publicly traded online gaming company. Sportingbet PLC, headquartered
in London, England, has been voted number one in the industry for
two years in a row by the authoritative eGaming Review Power 50
Survey.
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