Miners season to begin in May

AUGUSTA — Baseball in Sussex County is right around the corner and the All-New Skylands Stadium will soon echo with the crack of the bat and the pop of the mitt.
The Sussex County Miners, under the direction of first-year manager Bobby Jones, will open Spring Training on May 7, in preparation for Miners Opening Day on Friday, May 20 at Skylands Stadium.
Jones will lead the Miners on the field for the first time against his old team, the Rockland Boulders, in the team’s exhibition opener on May 11. First pitch for the Miners’ first exhibition game is scheduled for 6:05 p.m. The contest will be the first of four tune-up games that the Miners will play at home before their regular season opener.
The highlight of Sussex County’s four home exhibition games will be on Saturday, May 14. The Miners will take on their intrastate rivals, the New Jersey Jackals, and fans will enjoy craft beers and bratwurst sandwiches at the first-ever Skylands Stadium Baseball and Beerfest. Fans 21 and older can choose from 100 of the area’s best brews in a beer tasting from 1-5 p.m. Ticket packages to the Grand Slam Beer Fest include admission to the beer tasting, a five-ounce souvenir plastic beer mug, a voucher for a bratwurst sandwich and a ticket to the game. First pitch is at 3:05 p.m. Ticket packages and individual game tickets may be purchased online, by phone or at the box office.
After the exhibition season concludes, the Miners will kick off their second season of Can-Am League baseball with a 7:05 p.m. first pitch against the Rockland Boulders on May 20. Jones will be saddled with a tough matchup in his managerial debut, as he faces a team that he helped lead to a first place finish in 2015 and a Can-Am League championship in 2014.
Fans at Skylands Stadium have come to expect great family entertainment at the ballpark and Opening Day will not disappoint. Following the season opener, the Miners will feature the first of their famous fireworks shows for the 2016 season. The Miners have scheduled 11 postgame fireworks shows this season. This year, kids will have tons of fun checking out the all-new Backyard Place, an exciting kids’ play area with a trackless train, games, bounce houses and fun interactive mining tower where they can “mine” for gold.
If you cannot make it to the All-New Skylands Stadium for the season opener, fear not. Fun and affordable family entertainment will be available all season long with new and improved daily specials, highlighted by Craft Beer Fridays and Win-Win Wednesdays. At every Friday Miners home game, fans 21 and over can enjoy a variety of craft beer specials while watching the Miners take on their Can-Am League rivals. On Wednesdays, the first 500 fans through the gates at Skylands Stadium will receive a special Miners giveaway.
The Miners have even made improvements on some of last season’s fan favorite promotions. Families will love a new and improved Family Fun Sunday. Kids 12 and younger can get into every Sunday Miners home game for free and will get to experience the thrill of meeting their favorite Miners players with pregame autographs. Kids can even stick around after the game and run the bases at the All-New Skylands Stadium presented by Parisi Speed School.
Of course, the Miners’ most popular daily specials from their inaugural season will return this year, as well. The Miners will once again put on the best fireworks show in Sussex County at every Saturday home game with Fireworks Saturdays. In addition, Cheap Cheap Thursdays will return with $2 domestic draft beers, hot dogs and fountain sodas at every Miners Thursday home game. On Tuesdays, Miners fans get more for their money with Two for Tuesdays, featuring two-for-one specials on ballpark favorites such as hot dogs and popcorn. On August 16 and 23, fans will also get two games for the price of one by purchasing tickets to one of the Miners doubleheaders. To learn more about Miners promotions and events, visit SussexCountyMiners.com.
For tickets and more information, call Skylands Stadium at 973-383-7644 or email contact@scminers.com.