Tagged: AT&T Park

So long, Chicago

Catching up on a busy week at AT&T Park as the Giants prepare to celebrate Independence Day with the series opener vs. the Dodgers:

The Giants got a jump on this weekend’s salute to military veterans with their own Military Appreciation Night on Wednesday. Hundreds of military personnel and their friends and family were able to attend either with the Giants’ special ticket package or with the more than 400 tickets donated by season ticket holders.

Servicemen and women and volunteers from Operation: Care and Comfort were stationed at the gates to collect donations for care packages. Fans could also take the opportunity to write a letter to a member of the military, like the family below (one son is showing off where he signed the letter written by Mom; the other is getting a high-five from an OCC volunteer).

occsigning.jpgBarry Zito‘s Strikeouts for Troops program was honored before the game, and Army veteran Willie Mays received a plaque in recognition of his service. The Giants wore the special blue stars-and-stripes caps that all teams are wearing over the Fourth of July weekend in support of MLB’s Welcome Back Veterans program, and the night capped with a fireworks show.

Speaking of honors, my colleague Chris Haft wrote a nice story about how former Giants catcher Bob Brenly appreciated being included in the Giants’ tribute to the ’80s featured on the left-field wall as part of the team’s 50th Anniversary celebration. Here’s the full wall (I could only use a portion of the photo in the story itself):

forevergiants80s.jpgOne fun note: On Monday, when I arrived at the park around 3 p.m., I saw a bunch of fans get a surprise as they waited by the visiting players’ entrance for autographs or milled around Willie Mays Plaza — jogging by were pitchers Jonathan Sanchez and Merkin Valdez, getting in a little workout with a lap around the outside of the ballpark.

Easy on the wallet

Just a quick reminder of a couple of ticket specials this week:

For Monday night’s game, the K-Zone Offer gets you $10 off selected bleacher and view reserved tickets, thanks to the 10 strikeouts that Monday night starter Tim Lincecum and Tyler Walker racked up in Lincecum’s last start. Use code GIANTSK when buying tickets online.

On Tuesday, get $11 bleacher and view reserved tickets thanks to NBC11. Use code NBC when buying tickets. The first 20,000 fans get the fourth in the Gamer poster series. This one is my personal favorite: Bengie Molina, who “stands in front of freight trains.”
molina.jpgOne final note for Tuesday: It’s also Singles Night II, so if you think the perfect date would be a fellow Giants fan (and who wouldn’t?), this event’s for you.

Overnight sensation

sunrise.jpgAfter the Giants wrap up their homestand Wednesday vs. the Tigers, it’ll be time for an annual tradition that’s one of the most special experiences the Giants offer to fans: the AT&T Park Slumber Party.

I attended the first three Slumber Parties (this year will be the sixth time they’ve held it), and it’s hard to describe just how special the night is. While I get to go onto the field at AT&T Park on a regular basis, many fans dream about getting to just set foot on it once. At the Slumber Party, you get to spend the entire night there, and it’s pretty surreal.

The Giants also make it a very entertaining night all around, especially for families. The warning track is ringed with all kinds of games, from air hockey to Playstations to speed pitch, and in recent years, AT&T has set up a WiFi tent for fans to surf the Internet and send e-mail. Some fans even bring their own laptops to take advantage of the ballpark’s free wireless access; I did a live blog from the Slumber Party several years ago. Fans obviously enjoy the chance just to play catch and walk around barefoot on the lush lawn that the big leaguers tread upon. I still get a kick thinking of the two women who were thrilled to find the shells of Barry Bonds’ sunflower seeds in left field.

There’s plenty of food, all of the party variety (pizza, ice cream, popcorn), and a lot of fans get a kick out of eating dinner in the dugout. A couple of movies are usually shown on the ballpark’s video board, even nicer since it was replaced with a giant HD screen two years ago. In the past, they’ve also given away mattresses, with the lucky winners getting to sleep upon their prize that very night.

The wakeup call comes early at the ballpark, but I recommend getting up even before that to catch the sun rising over the East Bay hills. It’s a spectacular sight as it rises over the Coke bottle in left, before a nice buffet breakfast and the delivery of photos taken at home plate the night before (the Giants’ amazing publications department stays up all night printing them). Fans leave with a cool goodie bag of Slumber Party favors.

This year, a great added bonus is an autograph session with Tim Lincecum and Brian Wilson. That alone could be worth the price, as Lincecum is an All-Star candidate this year and Wilson is leading the league in saves.

I’d call the Slumber Party a once-in-a-lifetime experience, but there are folks who have returned year after year since the inaugural event in 2003. It’s not too late to sign up and see for yourself what a treat this night is.

Battle of the Bay resumes

As if the annual Bay Bridge Series weren’t enough reason to come to the ballpark this weekend …

shirt_0613_180x150.gifThe series vs. the A’s kicks off on Orange Friday with Barry Zito facing his former team, and it’s also ’80s Night, with the first 20,000 fans receiving a retro ’80s-style jersey T-shirt.

Based on the clues on the 50th Anniversary page, I can say without a doubt that the Forever Giants Fridays guest will be beloved third baseman Matt Williams. He’ll also be at the ballpark on Saturday for the first of the three big 50th Anniversary reunions, this one for Giants infielders from the past 50 years. Some of the others scheduled to attend (subject to change, of course):

Joe Amalfitano, Dave Bergman, Ernie Bowman, Ed Bressoud, Orlando Cepeda, Jim Davenport, Shawon Dunston, Darrell Evans, Tito Fuentes, David Green, Ron Hunt, Duane Kuiper, Johnnie LeMaster, Greg Litton, Bill Madlock, Willie McCovey, Willie Montanez, Rich Murray, John Patterson, Marty Perez, Mike Phillips, Ken Reitz, Steve Scarsone, J.T. Snow, Daryl Spencer, Joe Strain, Derrel Thomas and Scot Thompson.

bandana_180x150.gifBefore Saturday’s game, the A’s and Giants wives will face off in their annual softball game, always an entertaining event. And the first 20,000 fans will get a neat 50th Anniversary bandana.

bottles.jpgSunday’s giveaway is a good-looking Giants water bottle, in honor of CHW’s annual Make Time for Fitness Day. One of the many cool things about AT&T Park is that there’s an official CHW walking course there. It’s a good workout in a beautiful setting, so there’s another good reason to get to the park early.

Luck of the Irish

Tonight’s the first of two Irish Nights at AT&T Park, and fans with special tickets will receive Irish-themed Giants T-shirts and sit in the Irish Night section.

Even without the special ticket, fans in attendance will get to enjoy Irish-themed pregame and in-game entertainment. There will be another Irish Night, this one with a commemorative cap for those who purchase special tickets, on Aug. 19, kicking off another Heritage Week.

The first 20,000 fans in attendance tonight will receive the third in the “Gamer” poster series, this one featuring Tim Lincecum.

lincecum.jpgFor Tuesday’s game, by the way, there’s another ticketing promotion: Courtesy of Giants broadcasting partner NBC11, view reserved and bleacher seats are only $11. Enter code NBC when purchasing tickets.

I just noticed a new promotion on the schedule for Wednesday: Planet Green Presents: Get Your Green On! Fans who wear green to the game will have a chance to win prizes, and the first 1,000 fans who show proof they took public transit to the game get a reusable fabric grocery bag.

Cheap seats

vizquel_salute275.jpgIt’s almost time for the Giants to return to AT&T Park, and they’re giving you no excuse to miss the action this weekend vs. the Padres. On Friday, when Matt Cain opposes Greg Maddux for what seems like the one billionth time, fans can get $13 off selected tickets (use the code OMAR when ordering online) as part of the Giants’ night of honoring Omar Vizquel for breaking Luis Aparicio’s record for most games played at shortstop.

Aparicio himself will be in attendance for the pregame ceremony honoring his fellow Venezuelan. And because it’s also Until There’s a Cure Night, there will be postgame fireworks. It’s also Orange Friday, so dress appropriately.

50_hat_180x150.gifMore discounts come Sunday, when Tim Lincecum pitches. The Giants K Zone Offer takes $9 off selected tickets, since Lincecum, Tyler Walker and Brian Wilson combined to strike out nine batters Tuesday. Use code GIANTSK when ordering online. Fans attending Sunday’s game not only get to see Lincecum pitch, the first 20,000 receive a good-looking 50th Anniversary cap.

In between, on Saturday, we get the interesting (but unrelated) combination of Marine Mammal Day (a Lou Seal favorite) and LDS Day. The first 5,000 fans who donate $5 to the Marine Mammal Center on Saturday will receive a commemorative pin.

Meet Goose

gossage.jpgGoose Gossage, who’ll be inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in July, will be at AT&T Park on Friday as part of AutoTrader.com’s “Drive to a New Start” tour to benefit the Reviving Baseball in Inner Cities program and other youth outreach programs.

Gossage will host a clinic for 20 Junior Giants players in the afternoon, then he’ll be in Willie Mays Plaza with the AutoTrader.com 2008 Chevy Tahoe, on which they’re collecting baseball celebrity signatures. Each signature means a $1,000 donation to Junior Giants, up to $75,000. The vehicle, with all the signatures collected on the tour, will later be auctioned off and the proceeds divided among RBI and youth programs in each city on the tour.

Fittingly, two of the teams for whom Gossage played are the Giants and White Sox, who meet up to begin Interleague Play on Friday night.

Another night of celebration

likha.jpgThe first Filipino Heritage Night at AT&T Park was definitely a success, with over 4,000 tickets sold, one of the largest numbers for a heritage event at the ballpark. The Likha Pilipino Folk Ensemble provided pregame entertainment, and it was pretty impressive, as many of the cultural entertainment groups are. Here’s a short clip of their performance; the music you hear is from a full on-field orchestra.

murakami.jpgComing Friday: Japanese Heritage Night, featuring Masanori Murakami bobbleheads for those who purchased the special Heritage Night ticket package. And here’s a little Welcome to Third and King scoop for you: “Mashi,” the first Japanese player in the Majors, will be here in person as the Forever Giants Fridays special guest, signing autographs near the home bullpen from 5:45-6:15. He’s also featured on the season ticket for Friday’s game. By the way, the photo to the left of Murakami enjoying his first hot dog is displayed on the Club Level of the ballpark.

Take Aaron home

Time for more home decorating Tuesday, when the giveaway to the first 20,000 fans will be the second in the “Gamer” poster series, this one featuring Aaron Rowand.
rowand.jpgSpecial note for Thursday: After the 12:45 game vs. the Astros, the annual San Francisco Unified School District’s AAA High School Championship Game will be held at AT&T Park, pitting defending champion Lowell High School against George Washington High. Admission is free, and fans already at the Giants game are encouraged to stay to watch and cheer for these young athletes getting to play in a Major League ballpark.