Generally speaking, pretty much every home game has some special element to it these days. Most ballparks have veterans/military days, do tons of fun things for kids and also support awareness for things such as breast cancer research and autism. What we'll do here is wade through the entire promotional calendar for each of the 30 MLB teams, pick our favorite item and then rank those favorites, 1-30.

This is unbelievably subjective, of course, so you can tell me how wrong-headed my rankings are in the comments. Let's keep in mind that every single thing on here is awesome, so being the worst doesn't necessarily mean it's bad. And though it's better to promote autism awareness or honor military folk, we're sticking with the fun and unique promotions here.

To the rankings!

30. Padres, Replica camo jersey

It happens on May 30. Those jerseys are pretty great, but this shows the marketing department needs to up its game if this is the best they have.

29. Phillies, vintage bobblehead

Everyone has bobbleheads and this is a generic Phillies player in an old-school uniform (picture here). Definitely not bad, but they can do a lot better. You'll see what I mean ...

28. Elvis Andrus garden gnome, Texas Rangers

This happens June 14. I like Andrus and I like the gnome, but there wasn't much creativity overall. Still, from here on out I'm calling these must haves for the fans of each team.

27. Buck Showalter garden gnome, Baltimore Orioles

I'm a huge Buck fan and would love one of these on June 27. It's just a crowded field.

26. Diamondbacks fedora, Arizona Diamondbacks

On May 24, the D-Backs will hand these out (via diamondbacks.com):

25. Evan Longoria rubber duck night, Tampa Bay Rays

On April 19, fans will get a rubber ducky of Evan Longoria (he even has a beak!)

24. Tulo's power supply shirt, Colorado Rockies

I like this one, which is being given away on May 4 (via rockies.com).

23. Patriotic hat day, Detroit Tigers

It's on July 4 and there will be fireworks after the game, with the Tigers also giving away a stars and stripes themed Tigers hat. Sharp.

22. Hisashi Iwakuma bear hat, Seattle Mariners

Per mariners.com, "Kuma" means bear in Japanese, so the Mariners are giving these away on April 25:

21. Joe Maddon debut bobblehead, Chicago Cubs

On June 13, the Cubs will giveaway bobbleheads of Maddon being introduced at his first Cubs press conference (though in full uniform).

20. MVP blanket, Los Angeles Angels

On April 24, the Angels will be giving away blankets with pictures of all three Angels MVPs, Mike Trout (2014), Vladimir Guerrero (2004) and Don Baylor (1979).

19. Thurman Munson bobblehead, New York Yankees

The late, great captain is honored on June 18.

18. Star Wars night, Washington Nationals

July 19.

17. Star Wars night, Boston Red Sox

They are giving away Death Star baseballs! It happens on May 4.

16. Star Wars night, Kansas City Royals

The bobblehead? Jedi Alex Gordon. That is sweet. It's on August 9.

15. 1986 World championship bobblehead, New York Mets

It might have been ranked higher, but I couldn't find a picture to know exactly what the bobble entails. There's high potential here and it happens on August 29.

14. Turn Back the Dial to 1985, Toronto Blue Jays

In the 30th anniversary season since the Jays' first ever division title, they'll give away a triple-bobblehead of George Bell, Lloyd Moseby and Jesse Barfield on Aug. 16.

13. Yadier Molina Gold and Platinum Gloves bobble, St. Louis Cardinals

This is pretty awesome. Molina with his seven Gold and two Platinum Gloves (via cardinals.com):

Go get it on April 18, Cards fans.

12. Nasty Boys bobblehead, Cincinnati Reds

On April 25, the Reds are giving away a triple bobblehead of the Nasty Boys, Rob Dibble, Randy Myers and Norm Charlton from the World Series champion 1990 squad (via reds.com).

11. John Smoltz Hall of Fame bobblehead, Atlanta Braves

The newly-elected Hall of Famer's likeness will be handed out in Turner Field on August 14.

10. Bill Mazeroski replica statue, Pittsburgh Pirates

On August 29, the Pirates will give these away, honoring one of the biggest home runs in baseball history, hit by a Hall of Famer to boot.

9. Larry Doby statue unveiling, Cleveland Indians

It would be higher, but this was long overdue. The first African-American player in the AL, Doby will finally be honored. Fans in attendance will get a replica, too, on July 25.

8. Paul Konerko jersey retirement, Chicago White Sox

Not only is Konerko having his jersey retired, but the Sox are giving away replica Konerko statues on May 23 (via whitesox.com).

That pose look familiar, White Sox fans?

7. Stephen Vogt referee bobblehead, Oakland Athletics

Last summer, we posted on Vogt hilariously posing as a basketball official. The bobblehead is Vogt in his officiating gear, and it talks. May 28 is the giveaway date. Get there, A's faithful.

6. 50th Anniversary Weekend, Houston Astros

The Astros have an excellent promotional calendar, but the best is the 50th anniversary weekend, which includes a giveaway of a replica Astrodome (no, not to scale) on April 18. Via astros.com:

5. Vin Scully bobblehead, Los Angeles Dodgers

The best baseball broadcaster of all time in bobblehead form? Yes please. This giveaway is on Sept. 23.

4. Championship bobbles, San Francisco Giants

The Giants have probably the best top-to-bottom promotional schedule in the majors. There was so much to choose from and I hate not taking Metallica Day, but these two bobbles stuck out to me (via sfgiants.com):

The Pence one is of this catch:

And the Bumgarner one could've been better if he was crushing beers, but otherwise it's great.

3. BBQ branding iron, Minnesota Twins

This bad boy is being given away on May 25 (via twins.com).

I might be overrating it, but just picture branding your favorite team's logo into a steak, pork chop or chicken breast. That would be especially sweet at a big cookout. In all, this might have been the most creative promotion in the majors.

2. "Major League" Night, Milwaukee Brewers

I've already covered this, so hop on over there for the details. Hint: It involves a Harry Doyle talking bobblehead. So how isn't this number one? Well, a season-long promo revolving around a classic movie trilogy tops it. Still, here's me discussing how much I love this one.

1. #ReWriteTheFuture, Miami Marlins

This is a season-long promotion centering around this Back to the Future II clip, which was set in 2015:

Marlins.com has full details of the ongoing promotion, which includes this shirt:

Outstanding work, and definitely worthy of our top spot.

So get on out to the ballpark this season and gather that "free" stuff. Let's brace ourselves for actual, meaningful baseball now.