Inside The Padres

Padres Pulling Out All The Stops Once Again to Pack Petco Park vs Dodgers

Maren Angus-Coombs

Denis Poroy-Imagn Images
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San Diego Padres fans could think of this as getting the blue out.

Several Los Angeles Dodgers fans attempted to buy tickets for games at Petco Park for the National League Division Series and were greeted with a harsh message.

"Petco Park is located in San Diego. Salesto this event will be restricted to residents of San Diego County, southern Orange County, western Arizona, Las Vegas and the surrounding areas, and all of Baja, California. Residency will be based on credit card billing address."

If fans outside the areas mentioned attempt to buy tickets, their orders will be "canceled without notice and refunds given."

Honestly, this isn't unheard of when it comes to rivalries and teams do it in order to protect home-field advantage.

The Padres hadn’t even made it to their clubhouse for celebrations on Wednesday night after beating the Atlanta Braves 5-4 when three familiar syllables echoed through Petco Park, signaling what lies ahead.

A record-setting crowd of 47,705 at Petco Park, eager to celebrate after Game 2, erupted together, chanting: "Beat L.A."

“It does always seem to go through the Dodgers,” Padres general manager A.J. Preller said amid the champagne-soaked celebration afterward.

For the third time in five years, the Padres and Dodgers are set to clash in the NLDS. The Padres were swept in 2020 but shocked the 111-win Dodgers in 2022. That same year, late Padres owner Peter Seidler famously referred to the Dodgers as “the dragon up the freeway we’re trying to slay.”

The matchup between the two is fitting. They opened the season in Seoul, South Korea, splitting two games there, and will now meet in October with one team's season-ending after a best-of-five series.

“We've been going at it all year,” said third baseman Manny Machado. “It's been playoff baseball since Korea. Enjoy this moment today, and then get ready for them.”

San Diego took the regular season series winning eight of 13 games. There have been some memorable moments from the regular season but the postseason is where the score will officially be settled.

“We're in the part of the season where the winner moves on,” manager Mike Shildt said. “And we wouldn't want it any other way. It's going to be a wonderful series. We're super excited about it. … It's going to be two wonderful venues and high-stakes baseball. That's what we play for.”

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Maren Angus-Coombs
MAREN ANGUS-COOMBS

Maren Angus-Coombs was born in Los Angeles and raised in Nashville, Tenn. She is a graduate of Middle Tennessee State University and has been a sports writer since 2008. Despite being raised in the South, her sports obsession has always been in Los Angeles. She is currently a staff writer for the LA Sports Report Network.

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