Blast from the Past: Manual Scoreboards to LED Scoreboards

Blast from the Past: Manual Scoreboards to LED Scoreboards

In honor of baseball season, we want to share a bit of baseball nostalgia that centers around the connection between the Padres and our company that goes back many years and continues to present day – as reflected in the evolution of scoreboards.

Back in 1936, SDG&E donated the scoreboard at Balboa Stadium, which was once home to many baseball games before the Padres (part of the Pacific Coast League, a minor league) moved to Lane Field, a couple of miles toward the waterfront. Back then scoreboards were manual, as you can see from the historical, black and white photo.

Today, massive video display screens double up as scoreboards at Petco Park. Score updates happen in real time – no manual intervention needed to update the numbers. These modern-day video screens are lit by energy-efficient LED lights.

In recent years, SDG&E partnered with Petco Park to upgrade all the lighting at the ballpark to LEDs, as well as make a host of other energy efficiency upgrades. The upgrades have helped the Padres achieve significant savings and become one of the greenest ballparks in America.

A Bit More Padres Trivia

Did you know that the Padres as we know them today adopted their name from the Pacific Coast League (PCL) team by the same name which arrived in San Diego in 1936? The following year, in 1937, baseball legend Ted Williams helped the PCL Padres win the championship title.

Going to Bat for San Diego

In addition to our energy efficiency partnership with our hometown team, SDG&E also partners with the Padres on Going to Bat for San Diego, an annual initiative that provides recognition and donations to local nonprofits that focus on public safety and the environment.  As part of the donation ceremonies that will occur through the baseball season, nonprofit recipients get recognized at home plate.

Go Padres!