Creating a family-friendly atmosphere and providing more than just a baseball game are high on the priority list for the Mississippi Braves, the team’s director of sales told the Vicksburg Association of Marketing Professionals at its monthly meeting Tuesday.

Sean Guillotte, a Pearl native, outlined the Braves’ efforts to continue to attract large crowds to four-year-old Trustmark Park in Pearl.

“We are much more than just a baseball game,” Guillotte said. “We want to provide a family-friendly environment and promote Mississippi in a positive light. We are not the Pearl Braves, or the Jackson Braves, or the Tri-County Braves, we are the Mississippi Braves.”

Guillotte said in 2007, fans from 76 of the state’s 82 counties attended games at Trustmark. More than 250,000 people attended Braves games in 2007. Guillotte said people come to see tomorrow’s stars – the Double-A club has sent 29 players to the parent club in Atlanta over the last four years – but also for an entertaining night out.

Nightly promotions from $1 drink night on Thursday to Sunday Family Fun Day will continue throughout the season. Over the July 4th weekend, with four home games scheduled, the Braves will host fireworks on Friday, Saturday and Sunday. In addition, one fan at each game has a chance to win thousands of dollars with inning promotions. On July 4, if the No. 4 hitter in the lineup goes 4-for-4, one fan will win $4,444. On Saturday, if the Braves scored five runs in the fifth inning, one fan will win $5,555. And on July 6, if the Braves scored six runs in the sixth inning, one fan will win $6,666.

Also on Friday, special uniforms commemorating the Independence Day holiday will be autographed and auctioned off after the game with all proceeds going to Jackson-area charities.