Padres, Mariners moving fences in for 2013
- Padres, Mariners announced plans to alter the dimensions of their ballparks
- The Padres decided to move in the walls at Petco Park by 11 to 12 feet
- The Mariners are still debating the dimensions at Safeco Field
The walls are closing in on the Seattle Mariners and San Diego Padres, and both hope that is a good thing for their struggling offenses.
Both announced plans to alter the dimensions of their ballparks by moving the fences closer to home plate, lowering the height of the walls or both.
The Padres decided to move in the walls at Petco Park by 11 to 12 feet. Since moving to Petco in 2004, San Diego six times has ranked last or next-to-last in the major leagues in runs at home.
"This was driven from a baseball standpoint in terms of the right way to make it work for players," Padres CEO Tom Garfinkel said. "Players know what's fair and what's not. Baseball fans want to see the game the way it's intended to be played. When a hitter gets hold of a ball, it should go out."
Said manager Bud Black: "Players know certain things about dimensions on a ballpark. Pitchers and hitters understand dimensions. Pitchers will understand it; hitters will like it."
Petco allowed the second-fewest home runs of any stadium over the past two years. In 2012, the only ballpark to allow fewer home runs was AT&T Park in San Francisco.
The changes come to the power alleys. From the right-field porch to the gap in right-center field, the fence will be moved in 11 feet to 391 feet from home plate and lowered to match the sub-8-foot height in left and center fields. The deepest portion of the left-center gap will be decreased from 402 feet to 390 feet.
Distance down the lines will remain at 322, and straightaway center will stay at 396 feet.
"Our goal is to move Petco Park away from being the most extreme run-suppressing ballpark in Major League Baseball," Padres executive chairman Ron Fowler said. "After an extensive study, it became clear to all of us that some change was needed. Petco will still be a pitcher's park; however, it will no longer be the outlier."
In Seattle, debate about the dimensions of Safeco Field has been ongoing within the Mariners organization for years, especially as the team's offensive production has waned.
Since 2000, the Mariners have scored the fewest runs and have the lowest batting average at home in the American League. They are fourth worst in home runs in their home park during that time frame.
In 2012, an average of 1.43 home runs a game were hit at Safeco, fewest in the AL. That is slightly less than the 1.60 hit there in 2011, second fewest in the league behind Target Field in Minnesota.
The Mariners finished the 2012 season with the fewest runs and lowest batting average at home in the AL.
"Our goal was to create an environment that is fair for both hitters and pitchers," general manager Jack Zduriencik said. "We feel this will be accomplished with this new layout."
The biggest changes will be more spacious power alleys, which might result in more home runs but fewer doubles and triples.
The wall will be moved in 4 feet to 337 from the left-field corner to the left-field power alley. The distance to the power alley will go from 390 feet to 378.
From left-center field to straightaway center, the fence will be moved in from 4 feet to 17 feet, depending on the spot. In straightaway center, the distance will move from 405 to 401.
From straightaway center to the right-center-field power alley, the wall will move in 4 feet. The distance at the power alley will decrease from 385 feet to 381 feet.
The height of the wall will be 8 feet from foul pole to foul pole and a hand-operated scoreboard will be moved.
After the changes were announced, Seattle manager Eric Wedge suggested they might help the Mariners attract free agent hitters who have shied away from the club because of Safeco Field's dimensions.
Zduriencik said at the general managers' meetings that free agents are cognizant of the plans.
Contributing: Bob Nightengale, wire reports