Monday night's San Diego Padres game against Oakland was briefly interrupted when some of the lights at Petco Park went out.
It happened in the bottom of the seventh inning with one out and the bases loaded for the Padres as they were trying to extend a 3-1 lead. A's reliever Michel Otanez had just come into the game and had a 1-2 count on Padres batter Donovan Solano when a bank of lights in right field went out.
BAH GAWD The Undertaker has arrived at Petco Park pic.twitter.com/nZExuU0KRe
— MLB (@MLB) June 11, 2024
The "blackout" led to a spontaneous light show as Padres fans used the flashlight function on their smartphones to light up the park. The stadium DJ got into the act by putting on the Journey single "Lights" and the fans sang along.
The lights went out at Petco Park, so Padres fans put their phone flashlights to use pic.twitter.com/bUtY9UTv4K
— Jomboy Media (@JomboyMedia) June 11, 2024
This is not the first time we have seen the lights go out in the middle of a game. The lights went out briefly during an NHL game between the Boston Bruins and Florida Panthers back in 2019. That situation was arguably more dangerous, but the lights came back after a second or two.
Per the AP, the delay lasted about three minutes before play resumed. It seemed to throw off Otanez's rhythm, as he proceeded to walk Solano with the bases loaded, then gave up a single and a sacrifice fly as the Padres extended their lead to 6-1. Otanez closed out the inning, but did not return for the eighth.
So, who turned out the lights? We'll probably never know, but our money's on Johnny.
[@MLB]
Moonlighting as a blogger to pursue my interest and enjoyment of sports. Former high school and Division I athlete (now a "retired" family man) that loves watching and discussing all sports. Follow me on Twitter (@HoldoutSports) and like Holdout Sports on Facebook.
