(From L – R: Padres 1st Baseman Anthony Rizzo, Big Al, Padres Pitcher Brad Brach)

If it weren’t for my camera, you probably would never believe a word I’m about to say. Yes, I went to a bar and got hammered with the San Diego Padres and they were dressed in DRAG! Generally, not something you wake up every morning and say you did. What is even more impressive is the story behind this MLB team’s assault on downtown San Francisco in full-on erotic Halloween costumes.

It all started when around 10:30 PM when my buddies and I dropped by a local watering hole called Lefty O’Doul’s. If you’re ever in San Fran, check this place out. On one side is a Irish-themed bar and on the other side is an all-out buffet. It didn’t take long for us to notice the army of stacked 6 foot tall drag queens slamming booze and chanting.

The costumes ranged from chick outfits like Wonder Woman, a French Maid, a Nurse, and a Playboy Bunny, to a laundry list of female Disney characters. From their size and obvious camaraderie we could tell that they were a sports team and ultimately their abundance of baseball tattoos gave it away.However, we were shocked to find out that they were in fact the San Diego Padres. Eventually, after a couple of rounds we get to talking with one of their bullpen coaches, who was dressed like a clown and the entire backstory unfolded.

They were fresh off a 7-6 win earlier that day (September 11^th) over the Arizona Diamondbacks and upon returning to their locker room, they found that all of their suits were gone along with any spare clothes they might have had in their lockers. Fortunately for our and your entertainment, every locker had a different costume hanging in it.

So, they decided to sack up and own it. They all threw their costumes on (apparently a few trades were made) and then charged onto the team plane and started boozing. When they landed in San Francisco, instead of going to the their hotel, they went straight to Lefty’s which is where we caught up with them. We left the bar around 1:30 AM and they were all still there which may have contributed to their 3-8 loss the next night against the San Francisco Giants. Needless to say, these guys were awesome. It was really refreshing to meet a crew of pro athletes that my buddies and I could just shoot the shit with and slam some beers.

(Heckling Blanks) 

The best part of this whole chance meeting was sitting 2 rows up in left field at AT&T park the next night where we were an ear shot from Kyle Blanks the entire night. He may have forgotten his shenanigans from the night before, but we tried really hard to help him remember.

Thank God for cameras,

- Big Al