Game 4 - Petco Park

We arrived in beautiful San Diego around 1:00 and parked at the tail gate lot adjacent to the stadium. I went for a run while the P’s showered and got dressed for the game. Although this would be my second visit to Petco, I was really looking forward to it. Plus, we would be joined by Justin Rutherford, a great family friend who lives in the area. We met Justin at the entrance to the Stadium and he gave us a proper tour. The last time I was in San Diego, a friend and I ran the Rock and Roll marathon. We must have been exhausted when we went to the game, because I don’t remember liking it this much. 

We walked through the historic warehouse in left field, and ate lunch on the balcony overlooking the field as the Dodgers took batting practice. Scott Van Slyke, son of former Cardinal Andy Van Slyke, hit one ten feet from us as we walked onto the balcony. I was a great place to grab a beer, especially since they had Leinenkugel Summer Shandy on draft! The day was off to a perfect start.

Our old buddy Tommy LaSorda had our tickets waiting for us again, which made things much easier. Our seats were on the field level between home plate and third base, but we were in search of some sun. We walked around the stadium and found a perfect spot in the first row of the outfield. It was a perfect day for a game, and as you can see from the picture below, the fans were pretty excited about it. This guy was in his own world. I'm not sure how he was able to get off work for a 3:00 pm game, but I have a feeling he won't make the 8:00 am bell tomorrow, either.

This would be the first time we stayed for an entire game as this one was just too hard to leave. We were being entertained by the players on the field and those who thought they were playing in the outfield. The concessions were by far the best we've seen so far on our trip. I had tacos for the third day in a row and my Mom finally found a grilled hot dog like St. Louis.

My Dad loved nearly everything about this park and he gave Petco:

Pros: Weather, various beer choices, great food, incredible views from nearly every spot in the park


Cons: Padre team payroll, talent level.

Unfortunately, the good times would come to an end after the game as I was staring down a long drive. I would need to drive six hours until well past midnight so we were in position to make the Cardinals v. Giants game in San Francisco the next day. The anticipation of seeing AT&T Park and seeing the Cardinals made the drive go pretty quickly.