You don’t have to go far to have a good time this summer.
The San Francisco Giants and the Oakland Athletics are both enjoying successful starts to their season. Both teams are in first place, and continued success comes with a rise in ticket prices.
While those prices may be too rich for a broke college student, there are alternatives.
There are three minor league baseball teams in the area that provide you with the chance to go watch America’s pastime for more than half the price of the big league clubs.
A quick trip up to the Central Valley will lead you to Banner Island Ballpark in Stockton, home of the Stockton Ports, single-A affiliate of the Oakland Athletics.
I have been to many minor league ballparks around California. The ballpark in Stockton is by far the best. Sitting on top of the waterfront in Downtown Stockton and having been built in 2005, this park still looks and feels brand-new.
Any seat in the house provides a beautiful view of the downtown skyline. Watching a Ports game also gives you the chance to see the future players of Major League Baseball.
On average, field box tickets at AT&T Park for a Giants game cost $27 each. Tickets in the field box level at Banner Island Ballpark can be had for just $9.
If you want to see the future San Francisco Giants put their skills on display, head down to the South Bay to check out a game at San Jose Municipal Stadium.
You can catch a San Jose Giants game for as low as $11 a ticket.
With MVP’s like Buster Posey and MLB all-stars like Madison Bumgarner and Pablo Sandoval having played at the stadium as members of the SJ Giants in recent years, you never know what star-in-the-making you may see on the field.
The cheapest option for a ballgame can be found in Modesto.
John Thurman Field is home to the Modesto Nuts, who are the single-A affiliates of the Colorado Rockies.
General admission tickets to Nuts games cost just $6 each. The ballpark may not look as pretty as the other two, but baseball is baseball. Plus, maybe you could use that extra money you save on tickets to buy a couple of hot dogs.
If you find yourself wanting to not be bored this summer but you do not have the cash to go out to San Francisco or Oakland to catch a ballgame, fear not, you have other options.
