DETROIT - Demolition crews smashed the historic walls of Tiger Stadium on Wednesday, punching through to the interior of the ballpark that stood for decades.
Outfield walls cleared by baseball legend Mickey Mantle as well as Detroit sluggers Norm Cash and Cecil Fielder began to come down as contractors intensified their efforts to bring down the venerable park.
The scene was tough to take for longtime Tigers fan Chas Matreal and his son, Ryan, 23. "All beautiful memories," Chas Matreal said. "It is something beautiful that we're destroying, and it's history."
"Demolition means progress," declared signs on a construction vehicle at the site.
Matreal disagreed. "It's a natural museum of a hundred years that they're destroying," he said.
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