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Monday night’s Padres-Cubs game commemorated the 20th anniversary of Petco Park’s first official game.
The stadium itself, perhaps the team’s MVP, could not be reached for comment regarding its 20th anniversary.
But if you listen to the sounds of the turnstiles and the cheers echoing through the Western Metal Supply building, here’s the message I want to convey:
It would be fitting for the Padres team to rub shoulders with the East Village gem, which will host approximately 6.5 million fans throughout the 2023 and 2024 Padres seasons.
In other words, get to the World Series.
And guys, let’s not wait another 20 years or even half that to finally get it done.
Many other boxes have been checked inside the downtown ballpark since that same April night, when Point Loma High School graduate David Wells threw his first official pitch alongside No. 19 Tony Gwynn Doctor. Khalil Greene, a fellow Padres freshman, got on base in all five tries. Infielder Sean Burrows (23) hit the winning hit in a 4-3, 10-inning overtime victory over the Giants.
Back when coastal ballparks were the size of Yellowstone Park and the Padres won just one full season between 2008 and 2021, baseball was often sleep-inducing. However, his time in the East Village was a bright light for the team from the first quarter to the 21st century.
It’s a comfortable place to watch a game, contributing to the stadium’s 3 million attendance in its first season and last year, with similar attendance expected this year. Masu.
The National League West banner was raised in the venue’s second and third year, courtesy of Bruce Bochy’s final two Padres clubs.
Tony Gwynne appears at the Petco Park Drone Show on April 1st.
(KC Alfred/San Diego Union Tribune)
Tony Gwynn was not at bat for the game at Petco Park, but he provided commentary for the broadcast. Padres Hall of Famer Trevor Hoffman secured a milestone save at the new park, even though he initially thought 396 feet up the middle might be too hitter-friendly.
Adrian Gonzalez’s Padres teams have won 90 games in the seven years since their East Village days with the smallest payroll in MLB. Six years later, 1976 Cy Young Award winner Randy Jones threw the ceremonial pitch to open the 2016 All-Star Game downtown.
Jake Cronenworth delivered a long-awaited iconic moment to the stadium as the 2022 Padres sprinted to the National League Championship Series, giving the stadium a long-awaited playoff berth. The left-handed pitcher hit an RBI single into center field, leading to a decisive district-round victory over the Dodgers in front of a raucous, wet crowd waving gold towels.
It reminded me of the fun of baseball in October.
The World Series at Petco Park combined downtown San Diego with an event that began in 1903 and complemented the 1984 and 1998 Fall Classics at Mission Valley.
This marks the end of the World Baseball Classics, which brought an international flavor to the East Village venue.
As requests go, that’s not unreasonable.
The World Series has been held 20 different times in the 20 years since the $456 million construction of the stadium, which San Diego voters approved public funds for just two weeks after the 1998 Padres advanced to the World Series. It has been held in cities.
No one could have predicted that the 2004 Padres, who finished 87 wins and 75 losses, would accomplish the feat of winning the World Series in 2009 during their debut season at their new home, Yankee Stadium III.
It also helped the early Petco Padres reach the World Series as quickly as the big-market Giants, New York Mets, Philadelphia Phillies, Texas Rangers, and Washington Nationals did in their open ballparks over the past 20 years. It would have been unfair to expect them to advance into the world. .
Trevor Hoffman is pictured at the drone show held at Petco Park on April 1st.
(KC Alfred/San Diego Union Tribune)
Bochy’s Giants reached and won the World Series 11 years after the downtown stadium opened, but not before Gonzalez’s Padres pushed the 10-year West Division title into its 162nd game.
The seventh Mets team to play at their new home in Queens advanced to the 2015 World Series.
It took Pat Gillick’s Phillies and Chris Young’s Rangers just five years to win a World Series after moving to their flashy new home. The latter club was led by Bossy and won championships in 2008 and 2023 respectively.
They must defeat 14 teams to advance to the World Series.
The Padres dealt with unusual challenges (some of which were self-inflicted) related to stadium litigation that led to cuts to the Padres baseball budget and was later defeated by team owner John Moores’ divorce. He got a mulligan for not reaching the World Series at Petco Park. 20 seasons to date.
But given the money-printing appeal of this ballpark, it’s hard to blame San Diego’s World Series drought for ranking in the bottom five in MLB’s media market size.
Fans will reserve their seats before the Padres’ March 28 game against the Giants.
(Meg McLaughlin/San Diego Union-Tribune)
With strong attendance expected, Padres players ranked 13th, 7th, 5th and 3rd in annual salary from 2020 to 2023. Fangraphs.com estimates he ranks 13th out of 30 in terms of salary this year, but the club currently expects to have 3.3 million fans in attendance a year from now. Petco Park finished second behind Dodger Stadium.
Of the 20 teams that made it to the World Series over the past 10 years, nine ranked 10th or lower in salary. Those nine included four World Series champions: 2015 Royals (17th in salary), 2017 “trash can” Astros (17th), 2021 Braves (14th), and 2022. Astros (10th place).
So, 20 years from now, if the Padres still haven’t brought a World Series to the East Village, it’s going to rank as a pretty big disappointment.
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