How troops and vets can get free Tampa Bay Rays tickets

Feb 5, 2020 7:00 PM PST

1 minute read

SUMMARY

Tampa Bay, Florida is an important part of our country’s great defense strategy. It’s not always a highly visible part, but it’s an effective part.

Tampa Bay, Florida is an important part of our country's great defense strategy. It's not always a highly visible part, but it's an effective part.

You might have heard of it at some point.

But whether you're stationed in Tampa Bay, got out of the military in Tampa Bay, or just happen to be passing through Tampa Bay, the local baseball team wants you to stop by. So much so that the Tampa Bay Rays are giving away free tickets to active duty troops, retirees, and honorably discharged veterans of the U.S. Armed Forces.

Yes Coasties, this means you, too. (U.S. Coast Guard photo)

A lot of organizations have a salute to service program, but the Tampa Bay Rays are offering something special. You can pick up two complimentary tickets to any of seven Monday home games, with three possible additional bonus dates and special ticket offers throughout the season.

In case Tampa Bay isn't your home team to root for, the possible games are with teams from around the country, from Cleveland to Los Angeles and Baltimore to Texas. Just go to the Rays Salute to Service game listings and pick them one week before the scheduled game date.

If you're the forgetful type, you can have the site notify you when the tickets become available. So if you're stationed in the area and want to come root for home team or are planning a trip through the area and want to have truly unique Tampa Bay experience with a friend or loved one, the Tampa Bay Rays will love to host you.

The Rays are one of Major League Baseball's most fun teams – after all, this is the team that set their batting order to 8-6-7-5-3-0-9, for funsies one time. They didn't win the game that night, but a lot of people learned how numbers are assigned to baseball's defensive positions, and Tommy Tutone got stuck in every one's head one more time.

Now it's in my head. And yours too. Admit it.

This isn't the first time the Rays offered free tickets to the military-veteran community. The team has been offering them for years, and also offers free tickets for first responders and teachers (but they get honored on different days, of course).

So grab a few seats, a cold one, and some peanuts and make a trip to the old ball game. Go Rays!