We all enjoy going to the ballpark to watch a game. The cheering of our home team, the smell of hot dogs and popcorn, vendors up and down the rows. It’s such a different feel, emotion, and experience that is difficult to top!
What makes those trips so alluring, too, are the giveaway promotions. From bobbleheads, to T-shirts, to cool designed hats, there is always something to get the fans even more excited for a visit to the stadium!
In this edition of the O’s Top-5, we will look at some of the best promotional giveaways over the years at Orioles Park at Camden Yards!
5. Trey Mancini/BB-8 Bobblehead
Star wars is probably one of the biggest film series of all time. Between movies, shows, and merchandise, there is always something Star Wars fans can find, including baseball giveaways!
The Orioles used that philosophy to start a series of bobblehead promotions, and one of the best has to be the Trey Mancini/BB-8 promotion!
This bobblehead was first given away on March 21, 2019. It features BB-8, the loveable round droid, and Mancini decked out in a Jedi robe holding a light saber.
This takes one of the fan favorite players and united him with one of the most loved modern Star Wars droids put on the big screen. As a fan and collector, this is one you should tuck… far, far away! (Get what we did there? 😉)
4. Buck Showalter Garden Gnome
Buck Showalter was one of the most beloved coaches in Orioles history. From the time he arrived, and even beyond, his quirks, honesty, and smarts made him the perfect man to oversee bringing the Orioles back to respectability and the MLB Postseason.
Buck sure made that happen over his career, and the Orioles wanted to make sure that Buck was enjoyed by the fans, just as much as he loved them and the job of being manager of the team!
He wasn’t a fan of this at first, but this became a popular piece amongst fans, as the Orioles rolled out the Buck Showalter Garden Gnome on June 17, 2018. Even though 2018 would end up being Buck’s last year as manager, the Orioles made sure to keep fans not only enjoying his memory, but making a fun piece to remember Buck by that season.
Be sure to keep this safe, so you can dig it up for generations to come!
3. 25th Anniversary Replica of Camden Yards
Oriole Park at Camden Yards is one of the most iconic and beautiful ballparks in baseball. From it’s inception, and still to this day, it is considered a majestic creation and a staple of what a modern park should model itself after.
Celebrating it’s 25th anniversary, this replica model is something that will immortalize the beauty and longevity this great family atmosphere has to offer. If it wasn’t for the fans, this ballpark would not hold the glory, the memories, and most of all, Birdland’s home to the best fans in all of baseball!
2. Cal Ripken Jr. Bronze Statue Replica Figure
One of the most iconic and legendary heros in all of baseball, the “Ironman” Cal Ripken Jr. will forever be remembered as one of the greatest shortstops of all time. (He’s the 🐐 in our opinion!)
Playing in a record breaking 2,632 consecutive games, on September 20, 1998, Ripken Jr. ended his streak, setting a record that will most surely never be broken again.
With the record set on September 6, 1995, it was only fitting this Bronze Statue Replica Figure was released on September 6, 2012, marking the 17th anniversary of that record-breaking night at The Yard!
Fun Fact: On September 6, 1996, exactly one year to the date, Eddie Murray would hit his 500th career home run, dining the O’s uniform on that special night! Two heros immortalized on the same day, after being long-time teammates for many years!
1. Baltimore Orioles Hawaiian Shirt
You knew this would take the top spot!
First introduced as a promotion for fans back in 2015, the Orioles Hawaiian Shirt has made several appearances, as it has become a staple of numerous Orioles seasons going forward!
Taking on different designs and patterns, this has become one of the most, and The Baltimore Battery’s favorite, popular promotional giveaways.
What makes this so much fun is that not only have fans embraced this beloved promotion, but players and our very own Buck Showalter, have made this promotion one of the most fun to share in Birdland together!
Honorable Mentions:
Manny Machado Pro Stars Figurine
This was a promotion to celebrate the accomplishments of our young third basemen. Immortalized as a figurine, we will always be able to remember Machado in Orioles black and orange!
Darren O’Day Star Wars Bobblehead
Darren O’Day was one of our most reliable relief pitchers for many seasons. This bobblehead was one of the first introduced as a part of the Star Wars Day lines. Decked out in a brown Jedi robe, it captures O’Day’s memorable side arm delivery to be locked in place for years to come!
Any Baltimore Orioles Mascot Bobblehead
No collection would be complete without the iconic Baltimore Orioles Mascot, The Bird! This fun-loving character has been part of the fun at every Orioles’ home stand, and this promotion will forever be a part of avid collectors and young kids’ memories!
Fans always find ways to support their team with merchandise that can be bought, traded, and even hunted for. But it’s the ones the teams include the fans on that make the promotional giveaways the most fun to showcase and collect! Hurry to your schedule and see what the next promotion could bring forth!
What’s the best Orioles promotional giveaway of all-time? Let us know in the comments, and be sure to follow The Baltimore Battery on Facebook and Twitter and our podcast “The Walk-Off” on YouTube and Spotify! And, make sure to use the hashtag #thebaltimorebattery when sharing our content to show your Birdland swag!
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