A goose was on the loose Wednesday night in Detroit until a scoreboard at Comerica Park intervened.
As the Angels and Tigers waited out their second rain delay in the top of the sixth inning, a goose flew onto the outfield grass at Comerica.
Members of the Tigers grounds crew tried to chase away the goose but had no luck as it flew from the outfield to the infield and then back to the outfield. Tigers center fielder JaCoby Jones tried, too, taking a swat at the goose with his glove but missing.
The goose ultimately took off and began flying out of Comerica. Fans in attendance applauded as the goose made its ascent, with the Fox Sports West telecast saying, "There he goes. He gone. In cruise control now."
If only it were that easy.
In midair while on its way out of the stadium, the goose tried to slam on the breaks when it spotted a big blue scoreboard -- but it was too late. The goose slammed into the scoreboard and went crashing into the seats below, as the fans who were cheering seconds earlier exhaled in despair.
The good news: The goose turned out OK, getting to its feet after crashing and then being carried away from the seats by a Tigers fan.
We've been informed the goose is healthy and has been released outside the ballpark. #RallyGoose
— Detroit Tigers (@tigers) May 31, 2018
The whole situation seemed to inspire the Tigers, who rallied for five runs in the bottom of the sixth inning for a 6-1 win.
Afterward, they chalked it up to the #RallyGoose.
"My wife would have had a heart attack if she saw that," Tigers manager Ron Gardenhire said. "We're glad the goose is OK. That was not fun to watch when they were chasing him around and he went into the stands; that was scary."
As for the charms of the so-called rally goose, Gardenhire said, "I don't know -- we broke up the goose eggs, OK."
Angels manager Mike Scioscia laughed when asked about the goose.
"They're a beautiful animal," he said. "Looked like me trying to get off the ground with the wings for a while. He had about 6 inches of altitude, but he finally got up."
The veterinarian who helped to save the goose, Dr. Catherine Roach, threw out the ceremonial first pitch before Thursday's game.