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“We’ve been sharing the same messages in a very similar way since our very first season, but it takes time for people to embrace something here in Ottawa, so we’ve been really focused on the affordability and family-friendly nature of the product and the fun at the ballpark from the very beginning,” he said.

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Sometimes, ballpark promotions involve extensive planning and marketing, like the eight months of preparation that went into selling out the home opener. Other times, it can involve thinking on the fly, like in the aftermath of the Tkachuk trade.

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“If you’re willing to embrace the crazy fun ideas, then sometimes they’re a huge success,” Boyce said.

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People walking along a path outside the stadium stop to catch a glimpse of the July 31 game between the Ottawa Titans and the visiting Brockton Rox. Photo by Spencer Colby /Postmedia

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Megan Peeters drives an hour each way from Prescott to watch the Titans and has attended more than 20 games with her mother and daughters so far this season. She said the Titans’ athletes were important role models for her daughters and even goi out of their way to keep up with her family on social media throughout the offseason.

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“There aren’t many places where you can go down and connect with the players like you can (at Ottawa Stadium),” she said. “They know your name, they know how old you are, they ask how school is going.”

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Terry Kruyk, who has also been to more than 20 games this season, says it’s a great place to take young kids since there are many places in the stadium where kids can go run around or throw a ball when they’re tired of sitting in their seats.

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He also adds the players are great role models for his 10-year-old son, Max, who plays Little League baseball.

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Kruyk remembers one moment earlier this season when a Titans player disagreed with an umpire’s call and turned it into a “really good learning experience” for kids in the stands.

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“He didn’t use swear words or anything, but he was just visibly angry at the umpire, and he went into the dugout for a minute to cool down,” Kruyk recalled.

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“And then he actually came back … and talked to my son and explained to him how he shouldn’t have reacted that way and he was sorry that he disappointed my son by showing him a bad example.”

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Terry Kruyk takes a selfie with his 10-year-old son, Max, at an Ottawa Titans game. Photo by Terry Kruyk /HANDOUT

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Myfanwy Davies and Rick Bellwood connect with the Titans in another way. For the past three seasons, they’ve served as a host family for Titans players and get season tickets and free parking at the stadium in exchange.

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They’ve hosted several different athletes in their townhome over those three seasons and say they enjoy sitting down with the athletes for dinner on off-days and watching TV together. When players’ family members come to Ottawa to watch their sons play, Davies adds, they’ll sit with them in the stands and show them around.

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“We know most of them on a first-name basis now,” Davies said. “They’ve really gotten to know us and the fans, and it’s cool to see the kids just flock down to the dugouts at the end of the game to get autographs.”

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A fan gets the highest view possible for the July 31 Frontier League game between the host Ottawa Titans and the visiting Brockton Rox. Photo by Spencer Colby /Postmedia

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For the team, one of the most exciting aspects of the Ottawa market is that there’s so much room to continue growing. While Titans attendance is among the top five in the league and is projected to keep growing, there are still thousands more seats to fill in Ottawa Stadium.

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“There’s always more to crack,” Boyce said. “I think that’s the key thing to remember is that there’s still a city of a million-plus people, so there’s still lots of potential and probably hundreds of thousands of people who have still never been to an Ottawa Titans game.”

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The Titans are one of 18 teams in the Frontier League, an independent professional baseball circuit with 15 U.S.-based clubs and three in Canada teams. Ottawa currently sits second in the North Division and has at least another month of baseball ahead this year, with the regular season wrapping up on the first weekend of September.

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A fan updates his boxscore during the July 31 Frontier League game between the host Ottawa Titans and the visiting Brockton Rox. Ottawa won the contest 6-5. Photo by Spencer Colby /Postmedia

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