Beloved Michigan Baseball Team Has Largest Crowd Since 2013

There's something special about a local, minor league baseball team. Don't get me wrong, I enjoy the Tigers. Going to a Detroit Tigers game is something of Detroit culture. But, Michigan also has plenty of great minor league teams. A beloved Michigan baseball team just celebrated a new milestone.

That Michigan team actually just enjoyed their largest turnout in a decade for their Fourth of July game.

That Michigan baseball team is the Lansing Lugnuts. The team had a special game on the Fourth of July, plus fireworks after the game. That game drew 11,521 people. "Thank you for Going Nuts with us tonight, and happy 4th!" Lansing Lugnuts wrote on Facebook. They also posted some colorful photos from the game, which you can view below. The big crowd got to witness a great game, too, as the Lugnuts beat the Lake County Captains 7-4. My good friend Jesse Goldberg-Strassler is the Lansing Lugnuts' broadcaster, so I'm happy for Jesse and the team.

Switching gears to football, the NFL season is starting soon. The Detroit Lions have lots of buzz, and quarterback Jared Goff was recreantly placed at No. 1 on Sports Illustrated's tally of the best quarterbacks in the NFC North. Booher notes that Goff was was “impeccable” during the second half of the Lions’ 2022 season. That’s so true. Just look at the numbers. Goff threw for 29 touchdowns and had only seven interceptions on 587 pass attempts during the final nine games of the Lions’ season last year. That led him to having the lowest interception percentage of his career at 1.2 percent. Goff also didn’t throw even a single interception during the team’s final nine games of the season. Finally, during those nine games, Goff produced 15 touchdowns. The Lions’ record for the second half of the season was 7-2. Find more on Goff and the Lions here.

The Detroit Lions will take on the Green Bay Packers for the beloved Thanksgiving Day Classic at Ford Field, according to Sports Illustrated.

That means the Lions will be getting plenty of primetime love. After all, the team is also set to open the 2023 NFL season against the Kansas City Chiefs on Thursday Night Football.

Before Thanksgiving, Detroit will take on the Packers at Lambeau Field in Week 4 on Thursday Night Football.

I truly believe the Lions are going to demolish the Packers. Read on for why, and reach out to me on social media here and let me know what you think!

Jared Goff is good at, well, beating the Packers. He led the Detroit Lions to not one but two wins over Green Bay last season, and that was with Aaron Rodgers as his opposition. Goff just keeps getting more and more comfortable with the team, and there's no reason he can't lead the Lions to more wins over these rivals.

Yes, Aaron Rodgers is no longer with the Green Bay Packers. Even though Rodgers has been, well, a mess lately, he's still one of the top quarterbacks in the league. Without Rodgers, it's going to be difficult for Green Bay to get footing, at least until Jordan Love gets settled in. That said, I think Love is solid and could bring a lot to the Packers franchise in the coming years. But, yeah, no Rodgers is going to hurt the Packers this year.

The Detroit Lions had one of the best offenses in the NFL last season. In addition, aforementioned quarterback Jared Goff had his best season as a pro player. Now, with superstar running back David Montgomery in the fold and wide receiver Marvin Jones Jr., there's nothing stopping the Lions from improving upon their already fantastic offense this coming season.

Dan Campbell is simply a likeable dude. That counts for something in the NFL and with his players. Campbell led the Lions to two wins over Green Bay last season, and he's that same guy, calling the shots and pumping them up when they need it. He'll help them win again.

There are some factors in football - and in life, in general - that are intangible. Not to get too philosophical, but there's that factor that you can't really see, touch or understand, but it's there. When Campbell and Goff joined the Lions, the team's chemistry changed, and something magical happened. It's hard to put a finger on it, but it's there. It will help them beat Green Bay and other teams, to boot.