As work continues on Knoxville’s new stadium, the final season in Kodak is well underway with fireworks, Grateful Dead Night jerseys and Hawaiian shirts, among other promotions.

The Tennessee Smokies started a two-series homestand on May 28, which will bring the Chattanooga Lookouts and Birmingham Barons to Smokies Stadium for a total of 12 games before the team gets back on the road with a trip to Biloxi, Mississippi, and then returns to host the Mississippi Braves on June 18-23.

Minor League Baseball (MiLB) is synonymous with promotions, and the summer calendar is filled with fun at the ballpark. The first day of June brings the always popular Grateful Dead Night with pre- and post-game concerts by tribute band The Stolen Faces, special themed jerseys and commemorative T-shirts.

The jerseys usually benefit a nonprofit – in this case Remote Area Medical – and are auctioned during the game. The MiLB auctions can be found HERE and searched by team.

The second Saturday of the month on June 8 will be Margaritaville Night with Margaritaville-themed food and drinks, music and in-between inning entertainment. The Bary Jolly Island Party Band will perform after the game.

The first 1,000 fans through the gates will receive a spiffy Smokies-themed Hawaiian Shirt.

The warm summer months also mean fireworks after games on Friday and Saturday, a free and spectacular show beyond the outfield walls.

As far the current stadium, it will be multi-use and, in addition to baseball, will host soccer, concerts and community events. With a field that will host two very different sports, the pitcher’s mound will be high-tech and able to retract. WVLT reported on the mound in a story that can be read HERE.

According to the story, Esto Retractable has been contracted to place a state-of-the-art retractable pitcher’s mound in the stadium. The mound will be able to lower itself, turning what would be a lengthy, intensive project into a two-hour transformation.

A video of the WVLT story also can be watched below.

A full list of games and promotions can be found HERE.

See y’all at the ballpark!

Maria Cornelius, a senior writer/editor for MoxCar Marketing + Communications, is a lifelong baseball fan and longtime Smokies season ticket holder. If you’re on Twitter follow along HERE.