Here's what's new for Giants home opener marking 25 seasons at Oracle Park
SAN FRANCISCO (KGO) -- Baseball fans were out in force Friday for the sold-out San Francisco Giants home opener game at Oracle Park as the orange and black beat the beat the San Diego Padres 3-2.
Fans enjoyed the special game as Oracle Park kicked off its 25th season complete with an F-15 flyover and the home debuts of six new players.
Earlier in the day, crews were busy pressure washing seats, cleaning windows, and clearing off the tarped field.
"It should be a national holiday, right, all of us in baseball think it should be!" Shana Daum, a spokesperson for the Giants said.
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Inside the stadium, the Giants introduced some new sculptures, including a 7-foot-tall Giants logo that will be in the lower center field area outside of the ballpark's garden during the opening homestand for fans to take pictures alongside it.
Oracle Park is now the first baseball field in the country to install spotlights, similar to an NBA experience.
They installed a total of 12 spotlights in the offseason, which has the ability to blackout the entire field to spotlight players.
And things will sound different too, they've replaced their 25-year-old sound system with more speakers for a surround sound experience.
"People will say, oh my gosh it will be so much louder, it will be clearer, it will be easier to hear, it will be louder for the players on the field when you're down on the field because it was hard to hear which they're excited about, to kind of pump them up and give them some home field advantage," Daum said.
Fans were asked to be in their seats early Friday, 50 minutes before first pitch for opening ceremonies.
"We're really just excited to bring fans into Oracle Park to introduce the 2024 team," Rachel Heit, Chief Marketing Officer for the Giants said. "We have such amazing players, John Kahului, Jordan Hicks will be pitching today so we're really looking to put on a great show both on and off the field."
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Platinum artist Montell Jordan sang the National Anthem, with a secret special guests 49ers' Deebo Samuel and Fred Warner throwing out the first pitch.
As for the food, what's new?
You can still get your classic hot dog and a beer, but this season the stadium is highlighting San Francisco's culinary talents too - from Fuku spicy chicken by world-renowned chef David Chang to their fan-favorite crazy crab sandwich.
"Since we've opened our ballpark, we've been known for our food offerings and really to be reflective of the city itself and the region so we've got items for everyone," Daum said.
Also this year, the Giants made things faster for fans to get inside of the ballpark than ever before.
Oracle Park is now one of four U.S. stadiums that will start offering free "go-ahead entry," similar to going through CLEAR at the airport.
"So, you go to the ballpark app, you upload a selfie and then all you have to do is walk through, you don't have to take out your phone, you don't have to find your ticket, you and everyone in your group can just walk right in," Heit said.
On Saturday, the first 15,000 fans at the ballpark will receive a bobblehead of Camilo Doval, the Giants' closer, while on Sunday the first 7,500 children ages 14 and under will receive a Giants sliding glove and all children will be able to run the bases after the game.
The Giants also honored longtime announcer Renel Brooks-Moon, who is no longer be on the mic, by naming the PA booth after her. The team will be rotating through a number of people to fill in and there is no timeline for hiring her replacement.
Bay City News contributed to this story.
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