Free stuff is always appreciated, but free stuff with an Atlanta Braves theme? Sign me up!
Among all of the excitement for the upcoming baseball season, the Atlanta Braves announced their promotional schedule for 2019. Personally, giveaway games are my favorite games during the season. I have quite the bobblehead collection myself from the giveaways I’ve attended over the years.
This year there are quite a few cool giveaways aside from the normal bobbleheads, although I will mention those here as well.
In the past there have been many memorable giveaways, such as replica national league championship rings, the Sid Bream slide bobblehead, and last year’s Chipper Jones Hall of Fame plaque.
All giveaways listed will be in chronological order. Unfortunately I cannot include pictures here, but you can get a good look at them on the Braves promotional schedule.
The Rook
The first major giveaway of the year is the Ronald Acuña Jr bobblehead giveaway on April 26th. He made his MLB debut almost a year from this day, on April 25th.
Acuña did hit his first major league home run the next day, the 26th. The bobblehead is celebrating this moment in particular. The swing depicted on the bobblehead is featured on quite a few cards of Acuña from 2018 Topps baseball cards.
A fun story about that game to look into is the story of the guy who caught the home run ball (in Cincinnati). He was harassed by many people online for not giving the ball back for free, but after hearing his story on an excellent Knockahoma nation podcast, I feel that his actions were misconstrued by the public at large.
Here’s that home run highlight if you’d like a quick review… or maybe not so quick: this includes all of his 2019 homers and it took 11 minutes to get through the review!
The game itself should be a good one, as the Braves take on the resurgent Rockies and Nolan Arenado.
Drought Over
Josh Donaldson, the ‘Bringer of Rain’, is beginning his first year as an Atlanta Brave this season, and he was the premier addition made by the team, after he signed a one year, 23 million dollar contract in November.
The Braves haven’t made any significant moves since then, but the argument can be made that they don’t necessarily need to.
Back on topic, the promo game for him is May 16th vs the St. Louis Cardinals. His bobblehead looks great, featuring Donaldson’s signature follow through. I think he is going to have a fantastic year hitting in the top 3rd of a dangerous Braves lineup.
Get Your Chop On
My personal favorite giveaway most years are the hat giveaways, and this year is no exception. The Braves got NASCAR Driver (And huge Braves fan) Chase Elliott to design a cap for them, and they look nice.
If you like trucker style caps, this will be the giveaway for you. It features the old school double tomahawk logo that is featured on the throwback creme jerseys that the team rolls out some weekends.
This game takes place on May 29th, Vs the Washington Nationals. It should be interesting to see how our division rivals fare without their star Bryce Harper in 2019.
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Which One is He?
Dansby Swanson and Charlie Culberson looking the same has been a joke for so long it has gone mainstream. Whether it was purposeful or not, Bleacher Report reposted a picture of Culberson autographing a baby and called him Swanson in the tag.
Jokes aside, they do really look similar. The Braves had a program last year making fun of it, and now they’ve graced us all with the ‘Swanberson’ bobblehead merging the two players together.
This game pits the Braves vs the Pittsburgh Pirates on June 11th. The Pirates haven’t been really that good in a few years, but this year’s team has a good chance to be competitive with a solid pitching staff headed by Chris Archer.
Off The Chain
Ozzie Albies has quickly become a fan favorite due to his amicable personality and hustle on the base paths. Whenever Ozzie gets on, you know there’s a chance for a big play to occur.
His accessories are such a feature that they’ve taken on a life of their own. Twitter accounts exist for his helmet and gold chain. The giveaway here focuses on the chain, obviously.
Personally, this may be my favorite giveaway of the year – even over the hat. Ozzie is such a fun player to watch, and the chain is almost a part of his personality at this point.
The game is vs the new look Mets on June 19th. If new additions like Robinson Canó and Edwin Diaz are effective, this team could be dangerous in 2019.
The Bottom Line
There are plenty of other giveaways throughout the year that are great, just like these. There’s a Phil the Bucket bobblehead, a Freddie-and-Ozzie height chart, a bobble night honoring long-time usher Walter Banks, lunch boxes, an Ozzie slide bobble (without helmet, of course), an arm sleeve night, and much more!
Remember this list is just my opinion, be sure to scour the list to find your favorites. Just make sure to get out to Suntrust Park and support the Braves!