PETCO PARK - San Diego, CA

dodgers vs padres- june 21, 2005 - despite the unforgivable name, the padres new home was a source of great anticipation for me. "let down" might be too strong a term...but not by much. while it is stunning on the exterior, inside was a little TOO retro. it reminded me of all the oldness and character of yankees stadium...which isn't a good thing. there were some nice bits to it (the open park outside right-center, the towers), but they were outnumbered greatly by the not-so-nice. my seat was upper deck, directly behind home plate. but the deck is so steep and "close to the field" that if anyone in front of me leaned forward, i couldn't see the plate. the park views open to a neighborhood that had better be revitalized, stat. the fans were rude (something i DON'T attribute to san diego) and i felt very unwelcome overall. plus I was heckled for standing up in the middle of the 8th inning.

atmosphere: 6

viewability: 6

architecture: 8

peanuts: 7