Petco Park San Diego Tickets

A downtown home for the Padres

The San Diego Padres, founded in 1968, left Qualcomm Stadium after the 2003 season. Voters approved the new ballpark on November 3, 1998, with 59.5 percent in favor, and Petco Park opened downtown in 2004. Owner John Moores was instrumental in its design and construction, and the Padres credit it with catalyzing redevelopment of the surrounding neighborhood.

Canyons, gardens and a 1909 warehouse

Populous, working with architect Antoine Predock, opened up the space between the steel seating bowl and surrounding buildings to evoke San Diego's canyons, coasts and cliffs. This space connects the bowl to garden buildings finished in stone and earth-tone stucco and planted with native species.

The signature element is the Western Metal Supply Co. building in left field. Designed by Henry Lord Gay and built in 1909, the four-story brick warehouse housed a company that originally made materials for wagonmakers and blacksmiths and closed in 1975. The city declared it a historic landmark in 1978, and the Padres began laying out the ballpark from left field, where the building stands 336 feet from home plate.

Its southeast corner serves as the left-field foul pole. A ball striking the building's east wall is a home run; one hitting the south wall is foul. Phil Nevin hit the first home run into the building on April 15, 2004.

Choosing Petco Park tickets by area

Three areas stand out:

• Western Metal Supply Co. building: three decks protrude from its east-facing side, and the rooftop, 80 feet above the ground, is open to fans.
• Toyota Beach: a beach-themed standing-room deck flanked by palm trees beyond the right-center-field fence.
• Gallagher Square: a park beyond the outfield with lawn seating, sightlines to the field through right-center, and the game shown on the Sycuan Stage.

Seats range from full sun to full shade. The Padres' accessibility guide includes a sun and shade map.

Moments that shaped the ballpark

The first baseball game here pitted San Diego State, coached by Padres great Tony Gwynn, against Houston. Four weeks later, on April 8, 2004, the Padres beat the Giants 4-3 in the first big league game on Sean Burroughs' 10th-inning walk-off single.

Petco Park hosted the World Baseball Classic in 2006, 2009 and 2017. In a 2017 elimination game between the USA and the Dominican Republic, Adam Jones leapt to rob Manny Machado of a home run, reaching into The Beach.

For the ballpark's 20th anniversary, the Padres renovated Gallagher Square and moved the Tony Gwynn statue to the Tony Gwynn Terrace, which holds an exhibit on Mr. Padre's life and career. Petco Park also hosts concerts, special events and guided tours.

Getting to Petco Park

Petco Park sits at 19 Tony Gwynn Drive, on the corner of Trevor Hoffman Way in the East Village, surrounded by the Gaslamp District. Guests with accessibility needs can take a shuttle from the Padres Parkade, Tailgate Park or MTS Garage.