Baseball season has arrived in New York! If you are looking for a way to enjoy a ball game with your kids, we have got your guide to family-friendly baseball in and around NYC right here. Editor’s Note: This article has been updated for 2024.

But before you go to a game …

Review the home team’s policy for bringing bags (such as diaper bags) and outside food and drink into the ballpark.

Family-friendly NYC baseball: Major Leagues

New York Mets —  We’ve written many times over the years about how the Mets and Citi Field in Queens, by far, are the most family-friendly Major League Baseball option in NYC.  They offer family/child ticket deals, giveaways and, after Sunday home games, a post-game “kids run the bases” event. They have an awesome fun zone to entertain kids, big and small, in the center field plaza. And don’t forget the perks like free tickets and gear if your child joins the Mr. and Mrs. Met’s Kids Club. In 2022, the Mets added a Sensory Nook, a specially designed quiet area to help those with autism, ADHD and dyslexia escape from the overstimulation that can occur at major sporting events.

New York Yankees — The perennial AL East contenders finally started offering something just for your little Bronx Bomber at Yankee Stadium in 2017. That’s when the team opened its Kids Clubhouse, a 2,850-square-foot area on the 300 level in right field. It has baseball-themed playground equipment on a soft artificial surface and shaded areas with interactive exhibits. Parents can play along or watch the kiddies from a dugout a few feet away. The area includes TV monitors so you don’t miss the game, family restrooms with changing tables and a private space for nursing mothers.

Family-friendly NYC area baseball: The Minors

Sure, it’s not the big leagues. For families, though, minor league baseball is much cheaper and often more fun. You and the kids can get closer to the action at these more intimate parks and the home teams tend to emphasize entertaining the fans more than just making a buck.

Brooklyn Cyclones — The Single A affiliate of the Mets offers the Puzzle Piece Funhouse, “a sensory safe space, designed specifically to accommodate children with Autism Spectrum Disorder, as well as their families,” according to their website. You must apply online to use this space. Check the promotion schedule for fireworks nights and the chance to run the bases after a game. Tickets tend to sell out quickly for this cool park that has views of both the Atlantic Ocean and neighboring Coney Island.

Somerset Patriots — Pinstripers of the future are showcased in Bridgewater Township, N.J., a bit over an hour from Manhattan by car or 75 to 90 minutes by train. After hosting an independent team for more than 20 years, the Patriots in 2012 became the Yankees’ Double-A affiliate. This beautiful retro-style park opened in 1999, featuring lawn seating for the squirmier set. There’s also a kids’ fun zone, frequent post-game fireworks shows and Sunday kids “run the bases” events. You can even order food from any seat using a mobile app and then pick it up at the concession to minimize missing game action. If you plan on hitting multiple games, consider having your child join the Sluggers Kids Club. For $25, they get tickets to Sunday home games, goodies and access to some cool kid events.

Independent, collegiate league baseball for the family

Independent and collegiate league baseball is another great baseball option. The level of play may be a step below the Minors, but your kids will have as much — if not more — fun. You may see some past or future big league starts. Best of all, it’s only a fraction of the cost.

Long Island Ducks — Just an hour east of Queens in Central Islip and only a short Uber ride from the nearest Long Island Railroad stop are the Ducks. This original member of the independent Atlantic League always competes for the title. Kids under age 3 are free but must sit on an adult’s lap. Children age 14 and under can join the Kids Club to receive discounts and special deals. Watch for special on-field events and promotions.

New Jersey Jackals — Part of the independent Frontier League, the Jackels moved to a “new” historic ballpark for 2023 – recently renovated Hinchliffe Stadium in Patterson, N.J. Hinchliffe originally opened in 1932 as one of the nation’s finest Negro Leagues ballparks and is now one of only two remaining in the country. Future baseball Hall of Famers Leroy “Satchel” Paige, Josh Gibson, James “Cool Papa” Bell and Paterson native Larry Doby all played at the stadium. The ballpark, only 35 minutes from Manhattan by car, is to feature a museum dedicated to the history of the Negro Leagues.

New York Boulders — Also part of the Frontier League, the (formerly Rockland) Boulders play in a beautiful ballpark in Pomona, N.Y., about 80 minutes by car north of Manhattan. In addition to a playground, there’s also a batting cage, a mini-golf course and mini-train ride. All have a clear view to the field so you don’t miss the on-field action. Plus, the players exit the field through the stands so stick around after the game for autographs and photos (see the photo at the top of this post).

Staten Island FerryHawks — New in 2022 is this independent Atlantic League team. They play in the recently renovated former home of the Single A Yankees affiliate. It’s a short walk from the Staten Island ferry. Children 3 years or younger are not required to have a ticket during game days. Kids can run the bases after Sunday home games.

Trenton Thunder — This former Yankees affiliate is now in the MLB Draft League, a summer collegiate league for top baseball prospects. Your child can join Boomer’s Kids Club, a paid membership deal that offers ticket and gear discounts and cool game-day/on-field opportunities. Look for promo days when kids eat free or can run the bases. The ballpark in Trenton is about 90 minutes from NYC, via car or N.J. Transit train.

Photos: Kevin McKeever

September 6th 2017 Note: I’ve updated this post to include my own experiences with four teams; the Texas Marshals, the Texas Legends, the Dallas Wings, and the Dallas Sidekicks, as well as the annual Frisco College Baseball Classic. I also want to highlight the benefits of getting Pogo Pass*, which gets you into several RoughRiders, Wings, Legends, and Revolution games each year, as well as many other DFW area family attractions. If you go to more than one game a year, the pass will be very cost-effective for your family.

If you’re a sports fan like me, you’re probably also raising your kid(s) to love sports. With a team in each of the major professional sports leagues, the DFW area is an incredible place for us sports lovers. Going to a Rangers, Mavs, Stars, or Cowboys game is a great time, but they’re also expensive and sometimes not as kid-friendly as they could be, especially for younger kids.  However, if you’re looking for something more cost-effective with the same fun factor for your young sports fans, here is a guide to the many options the DFW sports scene offers:

For any sport: For both boys and girls teams, your local high school is a great place to start. You’ll be exposing your young ones to school spirit early, and in our area, many schools have players who will end up on division 1 college teams, so there is no lack of talent. For football, in addition to the game, your kids will also get to see the marching band. My son loves this as much as the game. We also go to see basketball, baseball, and soccer. There will be mistakes made at this level, so for kids learning the game, these can be used as teaching moments.

For baseball:

1) The Frisco Roughriders seem by far the area’s most popular minor league attraction. They are the Double-A affiliate of the Rangers and all of the team’s top prospects will end up playing for the Riders at some point. It’s also a great way to catch Rangers players on rehab assignments. We got to see Josh Hamilton and Yu Darvish at past outings. You can use Pogo Pass to get into two games each season.

2) The Texas Airhogs (formerly Grand Prairie Airhogs) is a smaller, cheaper option than the Riders. They are not affiliated with a major league team and therefore you won’t be seeing top prospects, but it’s still pro ball and it’s still fun.

3) The Texas Marshals of the Texas Collegiate League is a team of college baseball players looking to continue to play competitively throughout the summer. Admission is $5 for adults and $3 for kids. They have a small concession stand, and you can bring your own food and drinks. They play at the Prestonwood Christian Academy and it’s a great way to see competitive baseball up close. The crowd is small and tends to be mostly parents of the players, and this past summer I ran into a hall-of-fame parent of a player on the opposite team, Greg Maddux! And if you were wondering, his son is just as crafty as he is.

4) In early March, check out the Frisco College Baseball Classic. It’s a four-team round-robin style event with a doubleheader each of the three days. Played at Dr. Pepper Ballpark, they bring in top teams and you get to see two games each session.

5) Other local college baseball: TCU is usually very competitive nationally. For folks in greater Fort Worth, it’s a great way to see quality ball without having to make a long drive. Likewise, Dallas Baptist also fields competitive teams.

For basketball

1) The Texas Legends are the NBA developmental league team of the Dallas Mavericks, who play at the Dr. Pepper Arena in Frisco. There’s not a bad seat in the house, and they have a kid zone behind one of the baskets with some inflatables for kids who need a break from sitting. For a small arena, it’s a great atmosphere to catch a game, and the players play hard every night, trying to earn a call-up to the NBA. You can use your Pogo Pass to get into a couple of games each season.

2) The Hoop City Dallas Pro-Am summer league features teams made up of players who have played in the NBA, NBADL, professional leagues in foreign countries, and top NCAA division 1 programs. It’s a very inexpensive way to see pro-level talent in the intimacy of a high school gym.

3) Local Colleges: SMU is having lots of recent success and therefore can be a tough ticket to get. They are in the same conference as UConn, so go see the UConn Women’s team for some of the best basketball you’ll ever see.  TCU is historically not very competitive in the Big 12, but they host Kansas, Oklahoma, and Texas each year.

4) The Dallas Wings experience is relatively inexpensive and family-friendly. The area’s WNBA team includes Skylar Diggins-Smith, one of the game’s most talented and exciting stars. The games are played at UT-Arlington’s arena, creating an intimate experience without a bad seat. Don’t be deterred by their advertised ticket prices…use Pogo Pass to get into up to 3 games per season, or look for deals on Groupon.

For Soccer:
1) FC Dallas: I’m including them here even though they’re a major league team because you can get good seats for minor league prices. Toyota Stadium is a great venue, big enough to draw a loud crowd, but small enough that you can buy the cheapest ticket and you won’t be up in a nosebleed seat.

2) Dallas Sidekicks: I’m not a soccer fanatic, so when I first heard about an indoor professional soccer team, I was skeptical, but I couldn’t have been more wrong. We got a chance to have a group outing last season, and it was incredibly exciting. Because of the small playing area, the ball moves fast and the action doesn’t stop, creating an intense, high-energy atmosphere. Between the two teams, we saw 18 goals scored. I was also surprised at how physical the game was. I’m not sure I’d watch it on TV but was extremely fun to be there.

For Hockey:

1) Allen Americans – An affiliate of the NHL San Jose Sharks, this team draws top talent and has been at the top of the standings the last few seasons. If you’ve never seen live hockey from close seats, definitely give this a try. In my opinion, of the four major sports, the action of hockey translates the worst to TV, so seeing it live will be a whole new experience for those who have never been.

2) Lone Star Brahmas – this is a team of 18-20-year-olds who are hoping for college scholarships and attention from pro scouts. Several of their players end up on top division 1 NCAA hockey teams. Their arena is very small and it’s a great and low-cost way to watch quality hockey live.

For Football:
1) I’ve never seen indoor football before, so I asked group member Josh Graziani to guest-write about the Texas Revolution, who play in Allen: “The Texas Revolution indoor arena football games are intimate and action-packed. You get close-up experience of America’s favorite game and the team does a lot of giveaways and entertainment between quarters. The kids love it and the fans get into it. All of the games have great attendance and energy.” You can use Pogo Pass to get into some Revolution games each season.

2) College Football: This is a hard one to summarize.  If you go to see TCU, particularly against a big 12 rival, neither the game nor the impact on your wallet, will seem minor.  UNT and SMU would be more cost-effective choices but can be pricey for certain games.  There’s a lot of variances depending on who the opponent is.

Lastly, Some General Tips:

1) Before the game, go online and look at the rosters to learn the names of a few of the team’s key players.  When you’re there, point them out to your kids. They will feel more involved if they can cheer for the players by name.

2) Look at the promotions schedule before choosing the game you will attend. Many teams have days they give out free souvenirs such as jerseys, bobbleheads, etc. Your kids will get something cool and it won’t cost any extra. Some teams also have food deals like dollar hot dog nights.

3) Get there early.  Find a staff member to ask if there are any ways your kids can be involved. Some teams pick a kid to say “play ball”, announce a player, ride the Zamboni, or bring out the ball to start the game. Even if your kids don’t get to do any of those things, they can watch pre-game practice up close, or head to the area where players come on and off to get high fives.

4) Groupon and other similar websites can be your friend. Many of the local teams mentioned here run deals that can save you extra money.

*5) As mentioned above, Pogo Pass gets you into several games a year. Dallas Dads Group is an affiliate member of Pogo Pass.

We wrote previously that you don’t need to go out to a major league sporting event to have a major league good time with your kids.  Our recent outing to see the Frisco RoughRiders is a case in point of this.  On Sunday, May 1st we met up at the ballpark for a day that all of us, big and little, enjoyed thoroughly.

Sundays are a great day to head to Dr. Pepper Ballpark.  Before the game, the team allows fans to go onto the field to play catch.  This is just one of the cool promotions they offer.  Kids get to run the bases after the game as well, except on nights when the team will be doing a fireworks show after the game.

After the catch, it was time for the game.  Our group seems to have great luck at picking games to attend.  Last year, we happened to pick a day that Josh Hamilton played during his early-season rehab assignment to Frisco.  This year, we happened to pick the day that Yu Darvish would take the mound.  Yu pitched two innings and we could hear by the snap his pitches made in the catcher’s mitt that his velocity is back.

If the excitement of seeing a world-famous pitcher wasn’t enough, first-inning back to back home runs by Lewis “Sweet Lou” Brinson and Ryan Cordell had our group going bonkers.  Our group included dads with kids of all ages.  Some kids were veterans of the in-person ballgame experience, and for one of our members, it was his first time taking his two year old to a game.

Baseball has taken some criticism for how slowly the game can seem to move.  The RoughRiders combat this by having lots of kid-friendly entertainment inbetween innings.  A kids dance crew, some silly contests, and lots of music with chances to be shown on the scoreboard did well to hold the kids’ attention in-between innings.  If you have younger children who need a break from sitting, the Riders have you covered.  Two playground areas, a bounce house, and various carnival-style games are available in the space down the left field line.  We’ve heard lots about the new lazy river in right field, however it wasn’t open on the day we went.

In a close, hard fought contest, the Riders lost 4-3.  It would have been cool if they won, however the loss didn’t diminish from the experience.  The smiles on the kids faces were abundant all day long.  Our dads and kids alike really loved the chance to see quality baseball up close.  Similar seats at a Rangers game would have cost us $65 per ticket, but with the group rate the Riders offered, we paid $10 each. Our thanks to Hillary Adams of the Riders Group Sales team for A-Plus customer service.  We’ll be back for sure!

Disclosure: I participated in an Influencer Activation on behalf of Mom Central Consulting for the Staten Island Yankees. I received tickets for the game as well as food vouchers to facilitate my review and a promotional item to thank me for my participation. Despite being compensated, all opinions are mine and honest.

My family has been on a mission the past few years to visit as many Major League and Minor League ballparks as we can.

Wherever we go on vacation, we check and see what the city has to offer in regards to ballparks. My oldest son collects miniature bats from all the stadiums and has quite the collection. And when we go to a game, we pretend to be the biggest fans of the home team and sing as loudly as we can during the 7^th inning stretch. (That is, of course, unless we happen to catch a game in which our beloved New York Mets are playing against the home team.)

For whatever reason, in our many stadium visits, we had overlooked one of NYC’s Minor League teams, the Staten Island Yankees. Maybe subconsciously we stayed away because we are Mets’ fans, but whatever the reason, we had never ventured to Staten Island for a game. We finally put a game on the calendar and since it was the Minor League Yankees, we put aside any Yankee ill-will and dove right into being a fan of the Staten Island Yankees.

And now attending a Staten Island Yankee game is on my list of favorite things to do in New York.

The ballpark sits just a three-minute walk from the Staten Island Ferry terminal and the view from the ballpark is fantastic. Beyond the outfield wall, you can see the boats and the ferries cruise along the water. Lady Liberty stands tall past the center field wall and in front of the Manhattan skyline. Tourists can accomplish three things at once there – a baseball game, seeing the Statue of Liberty, and getting a great shot of the Manhattan skyline.

Kids will have a great time at the game. A bouncy house and pitching game can be found beyond the left field. You need to buy tickets to bounce or throw a pitch (cash only), but at $2 for the bouncy house and $1 to play the pitching game, it doesn’t break the wallet.

But the main reason to go to the ballpark is to cheer on the Staten Island Yankees. There is something special about watching a Minor League baseball game. It takes one back to a more innocent time and there is always the watching the next big thing while he’s an 18-year-old rookie.

Like most ballparks, the food consists of favorites like hotdogs, pizza and sandwiches. The prices are pretty standard compared to most other minor league ballparks in the Metro New York area. I drove so I didn’t even bother checking out the beer selection. Sorry, I don’t have any info for you there.

Getting to the game is easy. You can either take the Staten Island Ferry, which lets you off right by the stadium or you drive. Driving is easy, but the costs rack up between the bridge tolls and parking, so unless you can’t budget the time for public transportation, take the free Staten Island Ferry. The Staten Island Ferry is the best bargain in New York City and is worth the trip itself.

It was an exciting day at the park for my family. Each one of us took home a ball that was either fouled off or handed to us by a Yankee player and the kids scored some autographs. After the game, my kids ran the bases. I couldn’t help but feel completely satisfied as a dad as I watched my kids round third base and head home with giant smiles on their face.

Would I recommend a Staten Island Yankees game? Look at the smile on this face and you’ll have your answer.

For more information about the Staten Island Yankees, see the information below.

• Staten Island Yankees website: http://atmilb.com/1x4QL1c
• Staten Island Yankees Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/StatenIslandYankees
• Staten Island Yankees Twitter page: @SIYanks
• Staten Island Yankees Instagram account: @SIYankees