There were no Angels in the outfield, but there were plenty of bees. You know, the stinging insects that strike fear in the hearts of men, women & children. They seemed particularly interested in the ball girl's jacket. There were apparently thousands of them in the jacket that was on the back of a folding chair in left field foul territory. First notice of the sneak attack came when Kyle Blanks came walking in from his left field position. He consulted with Tony Gwynn and they both headed towards the umpire at 2nd base. The swarm was moving from left field to the foul territory in left field. They were just under the "Best seat in the house" when they headed for the jacket. Oliver Stone could make a case for the Dodgers summoning the Queen Bee......... But, since the Padres were losing and it was the 9th inning, there was no reason for any conspiracy.
Sure wish we didn't have all those Dodger fans at the old ball yard. At least some years we could out yell them because the Padres outplayed them. That was before the advent of AAA baseball in a Major League Park where fans pay Major League prices. In fact, the Petco prices are HIGH. In the National league, Cubs have the highest average for tickets at $43. Milwaukee brings up the low at $20. The Padres are $28. Beer prices (always an interest to fans) are intriguing, with St. Louis leading the pack at $8.50 (aren't they owned by a beer company?). The low is Pittsburgh at $4.50. The Padres are at $8. (with an increase this year to $8.25) which is WAY, WAY too high.
Maybe someday, somebody in the Padres organization will listen to the fans, but we've been at Petco for 5 seasons now & it hasn't happened yet. Actually, this year it seems some things have reverted to the garbage of that first season. On Thursday, it was 2 for 1 hotdogs (this is NOT new). Top of the 3rd, 3 concession stands were out of hotdogs. That is just plain inexcusable. In the 5th inning I got the last 2 at a stand named (drum roll, please) FRIAR FRANKS!! I suppose I should mention this occurs on the Upper Deck. Someone, somewhere apparently believes that the money we pay for our season tickets is worth less than what is paid elsewhere in Petco. From Opening Day, in 2004, I have tried to tell whoever gets assigned to talk to me, that they need to understand San Diego fans. It is different here. And the fact that there were mistakes made in building Petco (escalators, long rows of seats with no breaks), only fuels the fans' aggravation with the Padres organization. With the departure of Sandy Alderson (what did he do?) the top heavy organization is slightly better.
One thing I just have to say, please stop ordering the giveaway items that are Made in China. Does anybody actually look at this stuff? The Trevor clock held first place in the most awful rendition of a gift. The Adrian Gonzalez "statuette" may be worse. His face is tiny (1 inch long), his right upper arm is really big (1 1/4 inches, width) and his feet are HUGE (2 full inches). Try this on for size: real face, about 8 inches; real upper arm, maybe 6 inches without steroids; feet, unless you are Shaq, about 14 inches. Extrapolate those numbers to represent a real person. That would be one weird lookin dude.
So long
There were no Angels in the outfield, but there were plenty of bees. You know, the stinging insects that strike fear in the hearts of men, women & children. They seemed particularly interested in the ball girl's jacket. There were apparently thousands of them in the jacket that was on the back of a folding chair in left field foul territory. First notice of the sneak attack came when Kyle Blanks came walking in from his left field position. He consulted with Tony Gwynn and they both headed towards the umpire at 2nd base. The swarm was moving from left field to the foul territory in left field. They were just under the "Best seat in the house" when they headed for the jacket. Oliver Stone could make a case for the Dodgers summoning the Queen Bee......... But, since the Padres were losing and it was the 9th inning, there was no reason for any conspiracy.
Sure wish we didn't have all those Dodger fans at the old ball yard. At least some years we could out yell them because the Padres outplayed them. That was before the advent of AAA baseball in a Major League Park where fans pay Major League prices. In fact, the Petco prices are HIGH. In the National league, Cubs have the highest average for tickets at $43. Milwaukee brings up the low at $20. The Padres are $28. Beer prices (always an interest to fans) are intriguing, with St. Louis leading the pack at $8.50 (aren't they owned by a beer company?). The low is Pittsburgh at $4.50. The Padres are at $8. (with an increase this year to $8.25) which is WAY, WAY too high.
Maybe someday, somebody in the Padres organization will listen to the fans, but we've been at Petco for 5 seasons now & it hasn't happened yet. Actually, this year it seems some things have reverted to the garbage of that first season. On Thursday, it was 2 for 1 hotdogs (this is NOT new). Top of the 3rd, 3 concession stands were out of hotdogs. That is just plain inexcusable. In the 5th inning I got the last 2 at a stand named (drum roll, please) FRIAR FRANKS!! I suppose I should mention this occurs on the Upper Deck. Someone, somewhere apparently believes that the money we pay for our season tickets is worth less than what is paid elsewhere in Petco. From Opening Day, in 2004, I have tried to tell whoever gets assigned to talk to me, that they need to understand San Diego fans. It is different here. And the fact that there were mistakes made in building Petco (escalators, long rows of seats with no breaks), only fuels the fans' aggravation with the Padres organization. With the departure of Sandy Alderson (what did he do?) the top heavy organization is slightly better.
One thing I just have to say, please stop ordering the giveaway items that are Made in China. Does anybody actually look at this stuff? The Trevor clock held first place in the most awful rendition of a gift. The Adrian Gonzalez "statuette" may be worse. His face is tiny (1 inch long), his right upper arm is really big (1 1/4 inches, width) and his feet are HUGE (2 full inches). Try this on for size: real face, about 8 inches; real upper arm, maybe 6 inches without steroids; feet, unless you are Shaq, about 14 inches. Extrapolate those numbers to represent a real person. That would be one weird lookin dude.
So long