By: Erica Dobecki Follow me on my Twitter account for more baseball content.
Growing up, my dad was my best friend. While most girls spent their time with their moms, I formed a bond with my dad over sports. I take my own daughter to games now, seeking the same bond I had with my dad. What baseball means to me is sharing this love of the game with my family.
My sister is significantly older than me, so I spent my childhood playing wiffleball in my backyard by myself. I would create my own walk-up announcements: “Now up to bat for the San Diego Padres, Erica Dobecki!” Since I was playing myself, every single hit I got was a homerun and the run call would sound like “San Diego has its own Barry Bonds!”
Baseball became more significant in my life because of my epilepsy. I went to elementary school down the street from one of the local casinos, who coincidentally sponsored the Padres. They had to bribe me with golden tickets in order for me to take my epilepsy medication three times a day. There was always an audible groan whenever my name got called for the free Padres tickets that the casino had given to the school.
My dad and I would go to games at Qualcomm to watch players who I didn’t even realize were great until later in life: Ken Caminiti, Tony Gwynn, and my personal favorite, Trevor Hoffman. I grew up thinking they were great just because they were THE San Diego Padres and not realizing how much value they added to the game. They were beloved to me simply because they played for my hometown team.
As I grew up, the Padres struggled, and the games became a place where we would just spend time. My dad and I would always lament over the latest Padres loss and how it was more painful than the last. We only went to games when we received free tickets, which was still fairly often.
Things shifted in 2019. The Padres were finally starting to have a product that we were excited to watch and follow. It was even more emphasized by the loss of the Chargers to Los Angeles. The Padres became the only team my dad and I could find any common ground on. While we always talked about the Padres, this was the first time in over a decade that we were noticeably excited over them. We bonded once again over baseball but instead of bonding over Caminiti, Gwynn, and Hoffman, we were bonding over Tatis, Machado, and Myers.
I began bringing my daughter to games in 2021 and it was something we bonded over as well. I began to emphasize my love of baseball onto her and now she always wants it to be baseball season. She loves seeing her favorite player, Joe Musgrove, and talking about the Padres to whoever will listen. One day, I hope she is able to pass on her love of the sport to her own children.
One thing I never expected was the community I found. I found lifelong friends because of the Padres and Padres Twitter. It went from being hesitant about meeting people online to these people becoming some of my best friends and my rock whenever I needed someone. They became my surrogate family, especially after my parents moved away from San Diego.
The Padres Twitter community has kept my love for the game alive as the person who I bonded with the most over sports has moved away from San Diego. I don’t think I would have the same love if there weren’t a bunch of people sharing my enthusiasm and my experiences with the game.
I see the new generation of baseball and Padres fans happening here in San Diego and I hope their experience is at least half as amazing as mine. We have the biggest stars finally bringing what our city has noticeably lacked: prestige, excitement, and something to bring us all together.
What I am most excited about is seeing the new generation of the Padres and finally winning the World Series. I am excited to share that moment with my daughter, my niece and nephews, and my entire community. It is exciting to see the future with Machado, Tatis, Bogaerts, Soto, Musgrove, and so many more. I am excited to see my nephews, one of whom has the aspiration to play professional baseball, grow up with these players. I tell them more times than I can count that they are so lucky to experience this kind of baseball.
What does baseball mean to me? It started off as bonding with my dad and just another way we spent time together. However, it has become so much more. It became road trips, friends who became family and a lifestyle. It went from something I could do with my dad to something my whole family has now shared and loved. My mom now sends me anything and everything she sees about the Padres and has, by proxy, become a fan. Baseball has become something that we’re all connected by, and I wouldn’t change it for the world.