-By Kenneth Hein, Brandweek

NEW YORK Through July 13, Wise Snack Foods is sending out its "Snack Squad" to local neighborhoods in Boston and New York. Teams of brand ambassadors will hand out Wise-branded game pieces that offer branded merchandise and baseball-themed prizes.

Wise is the official potato chips and Cheez Doodles sponsor of the Boston Red Sox and New York Mets. "Wise Players" David Oritz and Jose Reyes will appear on special packaging throughout the month. Consumers will be invited to wisesnacksquad.com to find Snack Squad appearances.

The promotion will target young consumers, with Hispanics serving as the sweet spot, through local TV, radio, in-store and outdoor ads. One execution shows Reyes turning a double play with the copy: "Wise snacks goes with...not giving up the bag." Source Communications, Hackensack, N.J., handles.

Wise also serves as the sponsor of the Red Sox Lindos Suenos (Beautiful Dreams) program, an cultural exchange initiative that works to bring youngsters of different backgrounds together through their love of baseball.

"We are thrilled to leverage the natural passion of both cities for their favorite pastimes, baseball and snacking," said Jolie Weber, director of marketing at Wise, Kennesaw, Ga., in a statement. "We anticipate that the Wise Snack Squad will result in increased bodega buy-in, record-level consumer sales and a heightened brand awareness.

Prizes include T-shirts, HP notebook PCs, on-field batting practice opportunities, game tickets and free product.

Wise potato chips, founded in 1921, are touted as all-natural. Its overarching tagline is "Share something real." U.S. sales were $2.8 billion for the 52 weeks ending May 18, per IRI. This was up 1.25 percent over the year prior. At $610 million, its Cheez Doodles sales grew 4.3 percent.

The popular brand of chips spends its marketing dollars wisely. Last year, it spent $200,000 on measured media, per Nielsen Monitor-Plus.