Funday Sunday with Tulsa Drillers

I‘m a Tulsa Drillers fan, but mainly in spirit. I’m embarrassed to admit that I haven’t been to a game since they played at the old stadium at 15th and Yale. The first baseball game I saw was in Wichita as a tween or teen. Mostly, I just remember it being hot and loooooooong. However, as part of TulsaKids’ sponsorship of Hornsby’s Bullpen (more on that later), Joss and I ended up attending a game this past Sunday. And we had a great time!

We showed up right as the gates opened to do an Instagram live interview about the fun activities the Tulsa Drillers had planned for the day. Sunday day games are always Kids Eat Free, and there are free inflatables in Hornsby’s Hangout. Other activities for kids – available during any game – are a playground and splash pad.

And of course, there are always fun giveaways at the gate. Last weekend was Tulsa Sound weekend. The players had special Tulsa Sound jerseys, and we got some cool sunglasses! Get tickets and find a list of upcoming promotions at milb.com/tulsa/tickets/single-game-tickets

Getting our Tulsa Drillers Gear

The Drillers were kind enough to give us a $50 gift card to spend in their merch shop and/or on food. So we hit up the shop right away – we wanted to represent! Joss had to have a giant foam cowboy hat, and I encouraged him to pick out a T-shirt as well. I got a baseball cap. We were ready to cheer!

Other items in the gift shop include baby onesies, balls and bats, stuffed animals, sweatshirts…the list goes on!

Playing at the Ballpark

For younger kids, there’s a nice, shaded Kids Zone. We bypassed that because on the other side is the splash pad, and yes, it was hot!

Joss was initially hesitant to get wet – I should have planned ahead and made sure he had a swim suit – but ended up getting pretty soaked. We never saw it get too crowded, and it was a nice big area with plenty of seating for adults.

It didn’t sound like this is always free, but on the Sunday day games, kids can play on inflatables for free in Hornsby’s Hangout. They had two water-based inflatables. Another opportunity to cool down! You have to wear socks, but it looked like they had extras if you needed to borrow some.

I don’t know if they do this every Sunday or every game, but there was also Kids Catch before the game, where kids could go out on the field and play catch. We didn’t do that, but it looked like a good time!

Kids Eat Free

At this point, we figured it was time for lunch! The game started at 1:05 p.m., but doors opened at 11:30 a.m. The Kids Eat Free lunch came in a brown paper bag and included a hot dog, apple, juice box and popsicle. The drink/popsicle flavor/fruit can vary. Joss wasn’t a HUGE fan of the sour popsicle, but he is a fan of Dippin’ Dots, so we ended up getting some of that from a stand anyway 🙂

Finding Our Seats in the Sun

We found our seats, which were in the sun. Pro tip: Bring a towel or something to sit on if you attend a day game. However, the usher did say that we are welcome to sit in the shaded rows, as Sunday day games aren’t typically sold out. He said just to be polite if someone came up and said we were in their seats, but that it probably wouldn’t come up. So that was nice, although we mostly ended up walking around anyway.

It sounded like fireworks games – typically Friday and some Saturdays – are a lot busier, which makes sense in the heat. But the flexibility of the less-populated game was pretty nice.

Play Ball!

We were so surprised when the Drillers representative said that Joss would get to start the game by shouting “Play Ball!” So we got to go all the way on to the field before the game. There were a few other fans down there. One, the “Ball Kid,” got to walk the game ball down a red carpet. Then, two first pitches were thrown – one by a winner of a TulsaKids giveaway! Next, they played the National Anthem. And then it was Joss’s big moment! They introduced him, then held up the microphone, and he yelled, “Play Ball!” very loudly and enthusiastically. So special!

Watching the Tulsa Drillers Game

We didn’t watch the game as closely as we could have, perhaps. But I did try to explain some of the rules and what was happening to Joss. It was exciting to start the game off with a couple of home runs! And they did some neat promotions in between innings, like musical chairs on the field, throwing “softee balls” into the crowd, etc.

After several innings, they announced that kids were invited to run across the field with Hornsby. This was sponsored by Chick-fil-A, so not only did they run across the field, they got a free coupon as well! I was proud of Joss for being game, as I had to leave him on one side of the field and run around to where they were going to end up. But he liked it!

We also were able to get a quick high five from Hornsby at this point. He’s a busy mascot so barely had time to stop, but was very nice about it even so.

While we didn’t stay for quite the whole game, we were pretty close! And all in all, I think we both really enjoyed our day at the ballgame. Thank you to the Tulsa Drillers for the opportunity! We will definitely be back 🙂

Tulsa Drillers Tickets and Hornsby’s Bullpen

Upcoming Sunday Day games are July 9 and 30 and August 13. If you’d like free kids tickets to these games, sign up your kids (14 and under) for Hornsby’s Bullpen! Hornsby’s Bullpen members get free tickets to Sunday day games, plus exclusive Hornsby’s Bullpen deals, birthday bonuses, contests and more. Learn more and sign up today at milb.com/tulsa/community/kids-club

In general, it looks like general tickets range from about $7 (to sit on the lawn) to about $22. (This does not include the suites.) And there are occasional T-Town Tuesdays, where lawn tickets are just $3. Not bad for an evening’s entertainment!