2025 Major League Baseball

[TrekStar]

In 1984, my family moved from a suburb of Washington, D.C. (i.e. Gaithersburg, MD) to the San Diego area. Back in the late 1970s and early 1980s, the Orioles were great and were local sporting institutions. Then my family moved to San Diego, and suddenly, the Padres, who had been the worst franchise in American pro sports, were contenders. There's never been another feeling here in SD like that again. 1998 was close. But never again.

The 1984 Padres were a very good team that year with Gwynn and Garvey and got to the world series against Detroit.
I actually still have the Padres brown and gold cap from 84. 1998 was a very good season too, but the Yankees were a well oiled machine that year. Padres are a good team but in a tough division.

[Jmass]

After doing some reading today I’ve come around to the notion that the Sox made a good deal for themselves getting the Giants to take on the remainder of Denver’s contract. I also read that there is some dysfunction within the Sox front office. Makes me wonder why they felt that they needed Bregman (spelling?) and if they gave Devers a courtesy head’s up. I’d be a little sore too if I were him.

[MRP]

After doing some reading today I’ve come around to the notion that the Sox made a good deal for themselves getting the Giants to take on the remainder of Denver’s contract. I also read that there is some dysfunction within the Sox front office. Makes me wonder why they felt that they needed Bregman (spelling?) and if they gave Devers a courtesy head’s up. I’d be a little sore too if I were him.

They (thought-probably rightly) they needed Bregman because he's a gold-glove third baseman and they had one of the worst infield defenses in the league-of which Devers was a big part of the problem at 3B. He was also a right-handed power bat to add to a line up that was overly left-handed and did not hit left-handed pitching well. He filled two of their big needs in one player. Even with Bregman they still lead the league in errors though. Bregman had a rough start defensively, but found his stride and played well until he got hurt. But their defense is still bad. It's gotten better a bit recently but they are still at the bottom o the league in terms of errors committed, not to mention some of their outfielders making useless throws to home allowing runner son base to move into scoring position because they don't throw to the cut-off man trying to show off their arms (which are strong but not always accurate).

-M

[Dan2Dan]

After doing some reading today I’ve come around to the notion that the Sox made a good deal for themselves getting the Giants to take on the remainder of Denver’s contract.

I've heard this same thing in literally all of the online discussion or news coverage of this trade.

That said, I am from San Diego. So I have a propensity to root against the SF Giants. So that bias is also true.

[Dan2Dan]

The 1984 Padres were a very good team that year with Gwynn and Garvey and got to the world series against Detroit.
I actually still have the Padres brown and gold cap from 84. 1998 was a very good season too, but the Yankees were a well oiled machine that year. Padres are a good team but in a tough division.

Kind of you to say.

As a teenager working a summer job at the Del Mar Fair, I rented a baby stroller to Goose Gossage and was totally thrilled!

Those of us who go back 40+ years also know that the Padres are serial 'heart breakers,' interspersed with years of historic futility. So we 'long timers' are pretty jaded and detached, if perpetually hopeful. But our hearts are guarded. That does have one positive result: Petco Park is a very friendly place and very receptive to tourists (our economic lifeblood, locally, after military downsizing of the 1990s) and to fans of visiting teams. The only exception is Los Doyers. When they come to town, it attracts a lot of So Cal gang members and 'angrier' fans. I learned long ago, going back to Jack Murphy Stadium/Qualcomm never to go to those games. Totally different vibe.

[MRP]

Just curious, what ballparks people have seen games at-

I've been to Fenway more times than I can count starting when I was 6 and lasting though when I moved to the midwest in 2003.

I've also seen games at the following:
-the old Shea Stadium
-Camden Yards (2nd year it was open)
-the old Jack Murphy Stadium in SD
-Dodger Stadium
-Anaheim Stadium (unsure what it's called now)
(I visited one of my college roommates who was from SD in summer of '89 and wound up helping his dad move house, so he treated us to ballgames at all 3 parks while I was there).

plus a handful of minor league stadiums over the years.

I've been to and toured Yankee Stadium and the old Brewers stadium (circa 1990 I think it was called Fulton County Stadium-I was in town a day early for Gen Con that summer but the Brewers were on a road trip so my friend and I toured the park) but not gone to games at them.

-M

[Jmass]

Just curious, what ballparks people have seen games at-

I've been to Fenway more times than I can count starting when I was 6 and lasting though when I moved to the midwest in 2003.

I've also seen games at the following:
-the old Shea Stadium
-Camden Yards (2nd year it was open)
-the old Jack Murphy Stadium in SD
-Dodger Stadium
-Anaheim Stadium (unsure what it's called now)
(I visited one of my college roommates who was from SD in summer of '89 and wound up helping his dad move house, so he treated us to ballgames at all 3 parks while I was there).

plus a handful of minor league stadiums over the years.

I've been to and toured Yankee Stadium and the old Brewers stadium (circa 1990 I think it was called Fulton County Stadium-I was in town a day early for Gen Con that summer but the Brewers were on a road trip so my friend and I toured the park) but not gone to games at them.

-M

I envy your Yankee Stadium tour and your Fenway visits.

So far I’ve made it to
Two Busch Stadiums
Royals Stadium
Milwaukee Brewers most recent park
Cincinnati Reds most recent park
Texas Rangers most recent park
Colorado Rockies park
and the Atlanta Braves most recent patk.

Also have been to the Cardinals, Nationals, and Twins spring training sites and a few minor league stadiums.

I have a long time friend that shares my love for the Cardinals and we began a new tradition a few years ago of seeing the Cardinals play in different stadiums. We hope to make Wrigley later this season.

[Jmass]

Dan2Dan - I wish your Padres all the best this season. They are usually an easy team to root for and I like their manager. One thing I see that is a problem is that they seem to struggle at beating the Dodgers. I watched the two teams play last night and tonight and the Dodgers came out on top in both.

[Dan2Dan]

Just curious, what ballparks people have seen games at-

I've been to Fenway multiple times. But that was over 30 years ago, before the Red Sox won the World Series and in a period when they weren't overwhelmingly popular locally. So I could get walk-up bleacher seats pretty much whenever I wanted for $6 and a sausage on the Street for $5. Add in a round-trip ticket on the T, and the total cost was, like, $15.

I've seen Padres games at Jack Murphy/Qualcomm and then Petco more times than I can remember. Qualcomm was a dump at the end, sadly. Petco is such a great stadium and a really great place to watch a game, in my opinion.

I went to see SF Giants games at Candlestick Park several times about 25 years ago. Always leery of its reputation for night games being freezing cold, I only ever went to day games. I went to Candlestick in the last 2-3 years of its useful life while Pac Bell Park was being built in San Francisco. At that point, I found Candlestick to be a worn-out concrete shell. And of course, it was of the old school dual-use design, to accommodate MLB and NFL. So not great by modern standards. But the fans were really enthusiastic, and I enjoyed every game experience I had there.

On vacation once, I went to a game at the then-new "BOB" (Bank One Ballpark) to watch an Arizona Diamondbacks game. I found the whole experience really amazing and impressive. The retractable roof. All these water fountain features outside and surrounding the stadium. All these really cool, brand new bars and restaurants surrounding it. Was that the first MLB stadium to have a pool, too? I found it to be a marvel at the time.

Camden Yards was built after my family moved away from the Washington, DC area when I was a kid. So I've never made it there, much to my own regret. Like the BOB, Camden Yards was such a pioneering influence on the design of many subsequently built MLB stadiums, including Petco Park. Despite being a big Orioles fan as a kid in the late 1970s and early 1980s, I never went to the old Memorial Stadium in Baltimore. I'm not sure why exactly, but even then the neighborhood surrounding it had the reputation for being rough. And the stadium itself had a reputation for not being a great space to watch a game. (Though the fans were great, and in many years the team was also great.)

[Dan2Dan]

Dan2Dan - I wish your Padres all the best this season. They are usually an easy team to root for and I like their manager. One thing I see that is a problem is that they seem to struggle at beating the Dodgers. I watched the two teams play last night and tonight and the Dodgers came out on top in both.

Thank you!

Yeah, being realistic, there's definitely a 'big brother/little brother' dynamic between the Dodgers and the Padres. (And also between LA and San Diego generally.) And with the Dodgers' current ownership being willing to spend so big (and smartly), it feels a little hopeless sometimes from the perspective of a Padres fan...

[Dan2Dan]

So far I’ve made it to
Two Busch Stadiums
Royals Stadium

Jealous of these in particular!

I also really want to get to Wrigley Field one day.

I have a lifelong friend from high school who was originally from St. Louis, who loves the Cardinals. He's told me many times about how much of a baseball town St. Louis was/is, and how great of an experience watching a game at Busch stadium was.

[TrekStar]

It must be tough being a Padres fan, like I said there in a tough division, plus the Dodgers spend money like it grows on trees, just look at Shohei Ohtani’s contract, 10 years 700 million $$$ it doesn’t seem fair.

Look on the bright side, it could be worse, you could be a Colorado Rockies fan or a Seattle Mariners fan, Seattle is the only team in MLB thats never been to the World Series, they came into the league in 1977.

MLB stadiums I’ve been to, Fenway park, never liked it, the green monster wall is impressive, but the stadium itself is a cookie cutter. Been to Yankee stadium, old Shea stadium , Dodger stadium, Angels stadium, old Joe Robbie stadium and old Jack Murphy stadium. I’ve also been to Olympic stadium to watch the Montreal Expos when they were around.

I would like to visit, Atlanta-St. Louis-Wrigley field (Cubs) and Pittsburgh, heard that field is awesome and San Francisco.

[Makernaut]

I've been to The Ballpark in Arlington (no longer home to the Texas Rangers), Busch Stadium 2 (no longer home to the Cardinals), and Kauffman Stadium (soon to be replaced as the home to the Royals). Loved all of those venues, but I have a soft spot for Kauffman Stadium.

I'm editing to add that I went to Yokohama Stadium many times in the early 90s to watch the BayStars. Japanese Baseball is a fun experience at the ballpark and I got to see Jesse Barfield in his final year of pro ball when he was playing for the Yomiuri Giants.

The local AAA affiliate in OKC has been associated with the Phillies, Rangers, and now Dodgers. Got to see Ryne Sandberg and a few other future MLB players before they got called up.

[Dan2Dan]

It must be tough being a Padres fan, like I said there in a tough division, plus the Dodgers spend money like it grows on trees, just look at Shohei Ohtani’s contract, 10 years 700 million $$$ it doesn’t seem fair.

It definitely can be hard being a Padres fan. That said, having also lived in much more passionate sports towns than San Diego, there are comparatively few 'die hard' fans here for any sport. Generalizing, the level of emotional investment is lower. To illustrate this, when I was in high school here in the late 1980s, the Cleveland Browns former QB Brian Sipe came to speak at our Career Day. (He was from San Diego, I believe.) And to explain this to us teenagers he said, "If you go to a mall on an average Monday after a Chargers game, what percentage of people know how Dan Fouts played the day before? Maybe 3 out of 10? Well, in Cleveland, it was 10 out of 10." To me, that pretty much sums it up!