A Fan's Guide to the Game

With a great location in the heart of downtown San Diego, many have boasted PETCO Park as having "the best location in baseball." One thing's for certain, the Italian sandstone and stucco exterior fits right in with San Diego's culture and downtown area landscapes.

From the left field foul line, which is literally the old Western Metal Supply Company wall, to the Park at the Park behind the right field wall, PETCO Park is as unique as any other park in the League. The signature piece has to be the left field corner. Why move a historic building just to plop down a new baseball stadium? Just paint the corner yellow, add some seats and call it the left field foul pole. This has to be one of the classiest moves in modern ballpark design, and the effect is flawless. The Western Metal Supply building not only makes up the foul pole, but has been transformed into a four-tier seating section right next to the giant scoreboard in left field. This massive structure gives right-handed batters a nice target to pull long shots towards. I'll go out on a limb and call the left field corner at PETCO Park one of the coolest corners in baseball today.

With plenty of advertising, nooks and crannies, and a wonderful view of the San Diego skyline in the outfield, there's a lot of eye candy to take in between pitches. You can probably imagine 72 degrees, a cold brew in your hand, a coastal breeze and some sunshine on your face. Now put that together with America's favorite pastime and the fabulous setting of PETCO Park and you got yourself a pretty nice day off of work.

The Padres are hitting the field in 2009, so now's the time to fake a cough, play hooky from work, grab some Padres tickets and get outside for a Padres game at PETCO Park.