Have to work? Hate to miss the game? Mariners: We've got you

SEATTLE -- It was as picturesque a day as could be in the Pacific Northwest, surely one too pristine to be stuck at the office or working from home.

But not every hard-working employee in the Puget Sound region has the capacity to channel an inner Ferris Bueller and take in a weekday matinee at the ballpark like the fictional high schooler did on his iconic day off in the 1980s. So the Mariners’ marketing department concocted the idea of bridging work and play -- quite literally.

The culmination of the idea and the execution was a Work From The Ballpark Day at T-Mobile Park for Wednesday’s series finale against the White Sox.

With T-Mobile Park offering the perfect space to host at the Hit It Here Cafe in the second deck beyond right field, roughly 150 fans brought their laptops, indulged in a catered lunch and took in the sights of a picture-perfect day in Seattle. Tickets were $50 and included the meal, seat, wifi access and a special entry from the right-field gate. Because the Cafe is enclosed, it’s a quieter environment than being up close, creating a more suitable work environment for folks who need it.

If such an event sounds unique, it is. According to Mariners senior vice president of marketing Gregg Greene, no other team in baseball has put on a ticket promotion of this type.

“Looking at people coming out of the recovery, coming out of a pandemic, the number of folks that have gone back to work is still relatively low in the downtown core,” Greene said. “More people are still working from home. ... We have an opportunity here at the ballpark, midweek day game, a great space in the Hit It Here Cafe to give fans a chance to get out of the home office and get a different experience.”

Greene’s staff -- which executes numerous promotions throughout the season, many centered on marketing Mariners players -- first pondered the possibility of the Work From The Ballpark Day around the All-Star break. Wednesday’s event will probably be the only one of its kind at T-Mobile Park this year, but given the success and engagement, it will likely return for more midweek matinees in 2023.

“The great thing about baseball is the different communities, the different neighborhoods that you can create that fans create inside the ballpark, whether they do it themselves organically,” Greene said. “They have to work. Everybody has to go to work. Why not do it at the ballpark? Come out here, have a great time and get a little work done.”