We wrote previously that you don’t need to go out to a major league sporting event to have a major league good time with your kids. Our recent outing to see the Frisco RoughRiders is a case in point of this. On Sunday, May 1st we met up at the ballpark for a day that all of us, big and little, enjoyed thoroughly.
Sundays are a great day to head to Dr. Pepper Ballpark. Before the game, the team allows fans to go onto the field to play catch. This is just one of the cool promotions they offer. Kids get to run the bases after the game as well, except on nights when the team will be doing a fireworks show after the game.
After the catch, it was time for the game. Our group seems to have great luck at picking games to attend. Last year, we happened to pick a day that Josh Hamilton played during his early-season rehab assignment to Frisco. This year, we happened to pick the day that Yu Darvish would take the mound. Yu pitched two innings and we could hear by the snap his pitches made in the catcher’s mitt that his velocity is back.
If the excitement of seeing a world-famous pitcher wasn’t enough, first-inning back to back home runs by Lewis “Sweet Lou” Brinson and Ryan Cordell had our group going bonkers. Our group included dads with kids of all ages. Some kids were veterans of the in-person ballgame experience, and for one of our members, it was his first time taking his two year old to a game.
Baseball has taken some criticism for how slowly the game can seem to move. The RoughRiders combat this by having lots of kid-friendly entertainment inbetween innings. A kids dance crew, some silly contests, and lots of music with chances to be shown on the scoreboard did well to hold the kids’ attention in-between innings. If you have younger children who need a break from sitting, the Riders have you covered. Two playground areas, a bounce house, and various carnival-style games are available in the space down the left field line. We’ve heard lots about the new lazy river in right field, however it wasn’t open on the day we went.
In a close, hard fought contest, the Riders lost 4-3. It would have been cool if they won, however the loss didn’t diminish from the experience. The smiles on the kids faces were abundant all day long. Our dads and kids alike really loved the chance to see quality baseball up close. Similar seats at a Rangers game would have cost us $65 per ticket, but with the group rate the Riders offered, we paid $10 each. Our thanks to Hillary Adams of the Riders Group Sales team for A-Plus customer service. We’ll be back for sure!
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