Great American Thunderfest Satuday In Cincy

“Marshall Day” at Great American Ballpark and the “Big Green Coaches Tour” are coming up in Cincinnati, Ohio, on May 31, 2008. Herd fans will be treated to a game at Great American Ballpark between National League long-time rivals, the Cincinnati Reds and Atlanta Braves for the Great American Thunderfest, sponsored by the Cincinnati MU Alumni Club and MU Big Green.

The Cincinnati Reds are battling to make a run for the National League Central Division title under new manager Dusty Baker, as Ken Griffey, Jr. needs only two home runs to be the sixth player of all-time with at least 600 home runs, joining Sammy Sosa, Willie Mays, Babe Ruth, Henry "Hank" Aaron and Barry Bonds in that exclusive club. The Reds will host the Atlanta Braves, whose catcher is Brian McCann, formerly of Huntington. Brian, the son of former Marshall head baseball coach Howard McCann, played in Little League Six in town while growing up here 1990-95.

Over 1,000 tickets were made available so Herd fans could sit together down the first base line, and most of those have be purchased, but fans can still go to greatamericanthunderfest.com to see about getting tickets and taking advantage of the many activities surrounding the game for Herd backers.There will also be:
Early entrance and special gate for the Marshall group (12:30 entrance into the stadium for the 4:00 p.m. game
Pre-game reception in the Fan Zone with Marshall dignitaries and Cincinnati Reds representatives
Special seating for the Marshall group (Sections 530-533)
First Pitch Honors for Special Marshall University VIP
Thunder Tones vocal ensemble perform prior to the game, during the game, and sing “Take Me Out to the Ball Game” during the 7th Inning Stretch
Marshall University scoreboard and video board recognition between innings
“And This One Belongs to the Herd!” commemorative ThunderFest t-shirt to wear for the game (we want to show Cincinnati our Green & White!)
“And This One Belongs to the Herd!” limited edition Marshall baseball bats autographed by Marty Brennaman, the long-time voice of the Reds on radio, are available
Half priced Reds Hall of Fame tickets available for Marshall group ($4; Regular Price $8)
Shuttle buses to Great American Ballpark from Holiday Inn Eastgate and return
Post game reception at Holiday Inn Eastgate, including a Marty Brennaman recognition ceremony.

Ther is a Thunderfest Game Ticket Package for $20, including your game ticket and early admission to the Fun Zone. For $29.99, fans get game ticket, early admission, Reds Hall of Fame admission and Great American Thunderfest t-shirt. Even corporate ticket sales, for orders of 20, 50 or 100-plus are available by calling John Chafin, of the Cincy Club, at 513-404-8484 through Friday evening.

Some fans may want to stick around for a stop on the “Big Green Coaches Tour” on Sunday, June 1, at the Legendary Run Golf Club in Cincinnati. That event includes an evening dinner and “Big Green Coaches Tour” program including the new Executive Director of the Big Green Scholarship Foundation, John Sutherland, Marshall Director of Athletics Bob Marcum, head football coach Mark Snyder, head men’s basketball coach Donnie Jones and many other coaches and staff members from Marshall University.

Take yourself out to the ball game Saturday, May 31, when the Reds and Braves play at the "Great American Thunderfest."