A block party is planned in downtown Windsor to let the public watch the Detroit Tigers next home playoff game.
A section of Ouellette Avenue will be closed Wednesday afternoon so that big TV screens can be put up to let the public watch the Tigers play the Cleveland Guardians in Game Three of that American League Division Series.
The first pitch is set for 3:08 p.m. Wednesday, but the 500 block of Ouellette, not far from the intersection with Wyandotte Street, will be closed for the viewing party as of 12 p.m.
The event will be hosted by the Downtown Windsor Business Improvement Association.
Ward 3 Councillor Renaldo Agostino says the party will be held outside the Manchester Pub and Hustle 507.
"Manchester just reopened. The Peacock Lounge, another new business downtown, and other new businesses in the area. We're going to have Game Three of the Tigers; it starts at 3 p.m. Tigers fans will be able to come down, sit on the patio, and bring your own lawn chairs. We'll have a big screen out there, loud sound, and you'll be able to have a drink on any of those patios and have a bite to eat; enjoy the Tigers game," he says.
Agostino says block parties like these have been a success for businesses downtown.
"It's certainly been a success for businesses in the proximity. But it's also a success for people afterwards because you're bringing people downtown; they disperse into other businesses. Whether they go down the street to grab a shawarma, go to one of our fine restaurants, like Cucina. Anything else they do down it's bringing people to the core, and that's what it's all about for us," he says.
Agostino says he's expecting a great crowd.
"Tigers are hot obviously; it's first the playoffs in a decade for the Tigers, and I think the whole underdog theme their rolling with has got a lot of attention, so I expect a really good crowd out there," he says.
The Tigers trail the Guardians 1-0 in the best-of-five series.
The first pitch for Game Two of the series is set for 4:08 p.m. Monday.
The last time the Tigers were in the playoffs was in 2014, and this year's team wasn't expected to make the postseason, but they closed the season with a 29-13 record to secure the last American League playoff spot.
The Tigers then beat Houston 2 games to none to win the American League Wild Card Series to advance to the ALDS against Cleveland.