I missed out on the full bluster of it because I was just too young at the time. I have the lore and the stories to go by. And the legendary Sports Illustrated cover. And the grainy Monday night game vs New York.
Man..... to be around and following the Tigers at that time. But you're right, there's no way it would be the same these days. Media is so much different. Baseball scouting is different.
Chris Shelton captured the fans' imagination. Akil Baddoo certainly did. These are a couple of guys that shot out of nowhere to have good rookie seasons. But for as much fun as those stories were, I can't imagine anything comparing to how Fidrych burst onto the scene.