Never Giving Up

So, here we are. Four days ago we were sweaty, and we were nervous, but those of us out there with an olde English D emblazoned proudly on our hearts were also excited and optimistic at the prospect of facing Oakland's A's in the American League Championship Series. Our team had proved to us that they had the stuff, even when we'd (at least I'd) counted them out before they'd begun that turn-around series against the Yanks. Lucky to win one game, I said. Well, I was wrong.

Wrong by about six, and an adjective.

Lucky? No. Skill and determination, hard work and a "don't tell us we can't" attitude, have replaced Luck for these 2006 Detroit Tigers. And if you didn't believe, like I didn't, shame on you. Shame on you and shame on me, because the players never gave up.

Never giving up means coming from behind to beat the supposed best team in baseball by one.

Never giving up means making every sports writer, announcer, prognosticator, eat their words - especially when the words are "fluke" and "Yankees game." It means shutting out the most highly-touted offensive lineup since the '27 Bombers. It renders a two run home run in the ninth by catcher Jorge Posada meaningless, when your offense has already put up eight runs.

Never giving up means taking a game into the bottom of the ninth tied, and having players believe. One out, ok. Two outs, and it's not over. A hit, another hit, a walk-off home run. Second round-tripper of the night for a man who was simply trying to fulfill his son's birthday wish. And the wishes of everyone in the dugout, the bullpen, and the stands.

Never giving up means giving something back to a city that has watched its team go 12 straight years without reaching .500. It means trusting in the tried as well as the untested, from Jim Leyland and David Dombrowski to rookie Justin Verlander and unlikely DH Alexis Gomez.

Never giving up means...it means never giving up. Never.

And if there were a movie that better played out the events of this season with that message, with actors and plots and the eventual token "winning moment," I'd watch it, sure. But I would never in a million years take it over the feeling I have from the real thing.

This is happening, sports fans.

The Tigers are going to the World Series.