Tacoma Rainiers To Be Featured on CBS Sports Network's Minor League Baseball Game of the Week on Thursday, June 5
TACOMA, Wash. - This Thursday, June 5, the Tacoma Rainiers, the Triple-A® affiliate of the Seattle Mariners will host the Albuquerque Isotopes in the Minor League Baseball™ Game of the Week on CBS Sports Network at 7:05 p.m. PST. The Rainiers have been selected as one of 15 MiLB teams to host a nationally televised game this season as part of an agreement announced on May 1 between MiLB and CBS Sports Network.
To celebrate Cheney Stadium's national television debut, the Rainiers are offering a full night of promotions to spotlight the best fans in Minor League Baseball. All reserved seat tickets to the game have been dropped to $7, and along with the usual Thirsty Thursday offerings ($2 Miller Lite and Coors Banquet), a special Happy Hour featuring deals on select concessions items will begin when gates open at 6 p.m.
The team also plans to flood the ballpark with the faces of favored Rainiers players and other Tacoma icons in a twist to the game day experience at Cheney. Fans are also encouraged to create their own signs to show their Rainiers spirit throughout the broadcast on Thursday.
"We look forward to exposing even more fans to the excitement of Minor League Baseball, from top prospects working their way up to the major leagues to the fun and engaging elements our fans enjoy at our ballparks," Minor League Baseball President & CEO Pat O'Conner, added.
This is the first time in MiLB's 100 plus years of existence that multiple classifications of Minor League Baseball will be featured on a national TV broadcast. Fans tuning in to the Game of the Week broadcasts will see intrastate rivalries, an array of baseball's top prospects and 15 unique team locations over the course of the season. A total of 28 MiLB teams are being featured, as well as eight different leagues and more than 20 Major League Baseball affiliations.
Dick Gabriel and Doug Flynn will anchor each week's matchup. Gabriel, a three-time Kentucky Sportscaster of the Year, will be joined by Flynn, a two-time World Series Champion with the Cincinnati Reds and Gold Glove winner with the New York Mets. Lauren Gardner will serve as roving reporter.
"Since baseball began its first player draft in 1965, only 21 selections out of nearly 60,000 have advanced directly to Major League Baseball without first playing in Minor League Baseball," said Michael Hand, Chief Marketing Officer for Minor League Baseball and President, MiLB Enterprises. "By televising our games to a national audience, MiLB can feature the next generation of stars at all classifications as they travel The Road to the Show."
CBS Sports Network is available across the country to more than 99 million households through local cable, video and telco providers, and via satellite on DirecTV Channel 221 and Dish Network Channel 158. For more information, and to access the CBS Sports Network channel finder, go to www.cbssportsnetwork.com.
About Minor League Baseball
Minor League Baseball, headquartered in St. Petersburg, Fla., is the governing body for all professional baseball teams in the United States, Canada, Venezuela and the Dominican Republic that are affiliated with Major League Baseball clubs through their farm systems. Fans are coming out in unprecedented numbers to this one-of-a-kind experience that can only be found at Minor League Baseball ballparks. In 2013, Minor League Baseball attracted more than 41 million fans to its ballparks to see the future stars of the sport hone their skills. From the electricity in the stands to the excitement on the field, Minor League Baseball has provided affordable family-friendly entertainment to people of all ages since its founding in 1901. For more information about Minor League Baseball, visit www.MiLB.com.