Tune into a Boston Red Sox game on the radio these days, and you’ll hear an ad for Rockland Federal Credit Union.

Then, you’ll hear it again, and again.

One of Rockland Federal’s new ads airs at almost every commercial break. If you didn’t know before, you certainly know now that Rockland Federal offers mortgages.

Rockland Federal President and CEO Thomas C. White said the game-time advertising push serves as the credit union’s re-entry to the Red Sox advertising scene after a break of about a year or so.

"It’s a large piece," of the credit union’s advertising budget, White told Banker & Tradesman. "It’s our biggest piece this year."

But White wants to make sure Rockland Federal gets the word out that it writes mortgages, and "our type of members are watching Red Sox games, so that’s what we’re doing."

As nonchalant as that sounds, Julie Hall, executive vice president and partner atBoston-based public relations firm Schneider Assoc., says it’s exactly the right strategy.

"You have to fish where the fish are," Hall said. "You should also be advertising in your local area, and making sure you’re part of the local community. Every bank wants to be part of the local community."

Advertising during popular sporting events is nothing new, but may also be getting old.

"Ford said they got more sales of the Explorer from advertising on Facebook than they did from advertising during the Super Bowl," Hall told Banker & Tradesman.

For now, though, plugging a local bank during Red Sox games is still a winner.

Andy Ravens, spokesman for Eastern Bank – "the official bank of the Boston Red Sox" – said the measure of advertising campaign success is brand awareness.

"When we began advertising on NESN, we were aligned with one of the most popular brands in the world, the Red Sox," Ravens told Banker & Tradesman. "Our brand awareness was raised to an all-time high. Brand awareness was our number one goal."

Neither White, nor Ravens would discuss the cost of advertising during Red Sox games, but Ravens pointed out that it hasn’t taken anything away from Eastern’s other marketing efforts. The bank still advertises heavily during television news programs and online, Ravens said.

Sean P. Mahoney, partner at law firm K&L Gates in Boston, said the advertising game is a complex and somewhat risky one from the legal point of view, although few banks run into any real trouble.

"There are disclosures of various sorts if they’re indicating rates, deposits, loans, or any comprehensive financial services," Mahoney told Banker & Tradesman. "The fundamental legal issues are that they are not misleading."

When it comes to advertising partnerships with major sports teams, things can get a little more dicey.

"The risk is the high visibility. If you associate your brand with another, whether it’s the Red Sox, or another, whatever it is, there’s always the possibility for a scandal at one to rub off on the other," Mahoney said.

But that possibility seems remote. Consumers tend to be able to differentiate between the parties involved, and Mahoney said he hasn’t seen an instance where a sports team’s scandal has seriously damaged an advertiser’s reputation.