John Darnielle to Throw Out First Pitch at Fourth Annual Merge Records Baseball Night

Durham, N.C.-based Merge Records is one of the foremost long-standing record labels in indie rock, having been formed in 1989. In a unique practice, Merge and their local minor-league baseball team the Durham Bulls will host the Fourth Annual Merge Records Night at the Durham Bulls Athletic Park on Aug. 4. The Merge team will curate the Bulls’ at-bat music throughout while the Bulls take on the Norfolk Tides.

Other festivities planned include John Darnielle from The Mountain Goats throwing out the first pitch and William Tyler performing the National Anthem. To help promote the event, Merge and Superchunk’s Laura Ballance will play some of the label’s music on North Carolina Public Radio during the day of the event from noon to midnight—listen right here. Fans are urged to tune in before heading to the ballpark.

You lucky Durhamites can grab your tickets here. Attendees will also be able to land a limited-edition sampler CD of Merge’s featured at-bat songs for $8.99—find the sampler tracklist below.

Merge x Durham Bulls sampler CD Tracklist:

1. The Mountain Goats, “Choked Out”
2. Wye Oak, “Watching the Waiting”
3. Little Scream, “Love as a Weapon”
4. M. Ward, “Girl From Conejo Valley”
5. William Tyler, “Kingdom of Jones”
6. Mount Moriah, “Cardinal Cross”
7. Eric Bachmann, “Carolina”
8. Bob Mould, “Voices in My Head”
9. Will Butler, “Madonna Can’t Save Me Now”
10. A Giant Dog, “Sleep When Dead”
11. Benji Hughes, “Magic Summertime”
12. Hiss Golden Messenger, “Biloxi”
13. The Clientele, “E.M.P.T.Y.”
14. Superchunk, “Seed Toss”