The home of the Ragin' Cajuns baseball team is a very special place for fans to gather and enjoy college baseball. M.L. Tigue Moore Field, better known as "The Tigue" to the Cajun faithful, opened in 1978 and it has since hosted a lot of games and a lot of memories. The fans saw the 2000 Cajuns team go to the College World Series and they have also seen the Cajuns ranked number 1 for the first time in school history, back in 2014. That same year they hosted both a NCAA regional and super regional. Fans have seen countless players come through the program that exemplify what it means to be a Ragin' Cajun- players like Milwaukee Brewers' Johnathon Lucroy, Dylan Moore, Nick Zaunbrecher, Blake Trahan, Jace Conrad, and many more.
This is one of the very few places that you will see fans tailgate before games, feed players from both teams after the game and stand up during the 7th inning stretch and sing John Fogerty's "Centerfield". This is where true passion and love of baseball comes in, because you don't see this everywhere throughout the country. Hundreds, if not thousands, of fans gather outside the gates and drink and dance while they cook up all kinds of Cajun fixings like jambalaya, gumbo, barbecue, boudin, and anything else you can think of. This is also one of the very few ballparks where there are fans that get into the opposing players' heads. Section A is that group of fans at the Tigue that will do everything they can to get an opposing pitcher or batter off their game by yelling "ball four!", when the count is less than 3-2. They make silly jokes out of everything and I'm lucky that I get to call myself a member of Section A. It's always a blast.
I talked to some fans recently and asked them what they think makes the Tigue such a special place. UL student Kohl Guilbeau said,"It's fan friendly, the stands are close to the field unlike almost every other college. The fans can be heard on every single pitch and play. There are numerous selections of beer and food items, as well as the cooking club that cooks during the games. Also, fans sing "Sweet Caroline" and "Centerfield", even if the music stops playing." Guilbeau also talked about his favorite memories. He said, "Last year versus LSU in the supers, because about a thousand fans gathered lawn chairs at the Tigue- fan friendly,community loving ballpark. Another one of my favorite memories was Tyler Girouard's 3-run HR in game 1 of Supers at the Tigue, The place has never been that loud before or since then."
I talked to another fan about his thoughts about the stadium and the Cajun faithful. Drake Konow said, "The biggest difference from the Tigue and most stadiums is the genuine niceness of the folks there, in addition the consistent passion and knowledge of the overall fan base. Last and definitely not least is the ability to interact with the coaches and players after games, regardless of a win or loss. This is huge for a parent to bring their kids to a game," Konow continued to say, " There aren't many venues you can set your feet down at, let alone shake a winning pitcher's hand, throw the ball with your mom or dad and then tell the opposing team on the way out how well they played."
The fans are a big part of the game at the Tigue, even though it is a smaller stadium. The NCAA said that the Cajuns baseball fans are considered top 5 in the entire nation. Even opposing coaches and fans agree that it is a special place to play. ESPN reporter Pedro Gomez said, "The warmth Lafayette showed me is unmatched." The Princeton head coach Scott Bradley said, "I've been to a lot of places-Baton Rouge, South Carolina, Arkansas...This is a special place, that's as fun a baseball environment I've ever been in." This is what makes baseball so much fun and honestly being a Cajuns fan has grown my passion for baseball and for the University. I have been going to Cajuns baseball games ever since I started going to UL, back in 2011, which seems so long ago now that I think about it. I have seen a lot of games and have a lot of memories, but my favorite memory is a very recent one.
Last week, the Cajuns hosted the Lafayette Regional and it was a wild weekend because of the weather. The Cajuns first game didn't start until 9:40 on Friday night against Princeton. The Cajuns fell behind early, but battled back to take the lead on a Joe Robbins' RBI triple to take the lead 4-3 and then took a 5-3 lead on a Kyle Clement sacrifice fly. The Cajuns game didn't end until about 12:30 am and the stands were still packed. That game alone shows you how passionate Cajuns fans are about this team. The Cajuns played their second game of the regional on Sunday afternoon against Arizona and the Cajun faithful came out in full force once again to see the Cajuns win 10-3. Then, Monday came and the fans knew this would be the last day that they would see the Tigue look the same, whether the team won or lost, because there will be renovations in the off season to build a new stadium. In the middle of the seventh inning, the Ragin' Cajuns fans stood up and sang "Centerfield" for the final time at the old ballpark. The last out of the second game on Monday came and the Cajuns fans stood there in silence and admired the players, coaches, and stadium because they knew this would be the last time they saw this group of players in the stadium as it is and then the lights turned off for the final time at the Tigue as we know it.
The Regional was my favorite memory, not only because it was my first NCAA regional experience, but I also saw the true passion the fan base has for the University and this team. They all came out in full force, despite the weather, and that is why the Tigue is the most special place to play
