May the 4th be with you: This week in Minor League Baseball promotions

There are three certainties in life: Death, taxes and most importantly, Minor League promotions. MiLB.com's Ben Hill has the inside scoop on the latter, and he'll be sharing the best with us and you each and every week. Check out a few upcoming promos below and read his full recap right here. You can follow Ben on Twitter @Bensbiz.

In an ideal world, all Minor League teams would schedule a "Star Wars" promotion on the unofficial holiday that is "May the Fourth Be With You." But we do not live in an ideal world; we live in a world in which May 4 has fallen on a Monday.

Very few teams are about to squander one of their premier theme night promotions on a Monday, that most dreary of weeknights. But many are keeping with the "May the Fourth" spirit by staging "Star Wars" promotions over the preceding weekend. The Force Awakens in the Minor Leagues, in other words. From now through the end of August, "Star Wars" theme nights will be happening across the country at a fast and furious clip (sorry, wrong movie franchise).  

"Star Wars" promotions always include character appearances at the ballpark, but an increasing number of teams are incorporating theme jerseys into the mix. Because imagery is everything here on the internet, let us pay special attention to the three teams who will be taking the field in "Star Wars"-inspired uniform tops this week: The Round Rock Express (Friday), Jackson Generals (Saturday) and Mississippi Braves (Saturday).

The Express have gone full R2-D2, as befits a franchise that already identifies itself using two Rs (Round Rock = R2):

The Generals pull back the frame to reveal R2-D2 alongside his pal C3PO, the two of them looking resplendent amid the desert landscape of Tatooine:

Then, finally, we have the Mississippi Braves, who have created a hallucinogenic collage featuring Darth Vader, Yoda, legions of storm troopers and, perhaps a bit out of place, the team's primary logo in the center of it all:

Finally, a brief mention must be given to the Indianapolis Indians. The team is staging its "Star Wars" night on Saturday while, as part of an unrelated promotional endeavor, Wade Boggs is signing autographs at the ballpark. The team reports that there are currently no plans to integrate the four-time American League batting champion into the "Star Wars" universe, but one can dream. Obi-Wade Kenoboggs, anyone?