SAN DIEGO (KGTV) - Cheering on the Padres in the NLCS one of the original super fans, 92-year-old Sylvia Goldberg, a season ticket holder since the team formed in 1969.
Inside Goldberg's La Mesa home: countless memorabilia, holding decades of Padres memories.
“I live and breathe the Padres,” said Goldberg. “They keep me going, and I’m grateful.”
Originally a Dodgers fan, Goldberg and her late husband turned Friar faithful when the team was founded in 1969, becoming season ticket holders.
“I remember how exciting it was. The price per ticket was $3.50. That was for the front row,” said Goldberg.
Goldberg credits the Padres with giving her part of her independence. In those early years, her husband worked Sundays. At age 40, she couldn't drive.
"No way get to the Padres game, so I decided I had to learn how to drive,” said Goldberg.
Over the decades, there have been so many memories. Her favorite? Being with other fans after the Padres flew home in 1984, down two games in the NLCS to the Chicago Cubs.
“I remember them chanting, ‘Three in a row! Three in a row! Sure enough, they pulled it off,’” said Goldberg.
Included in her memorabilia: tickets printed in 2004 in anticipation of the playoffs and World Series. The team didn't make the playoffs.
This time, she’s planning for a different ending.
When asked what's left on her Padres bucket list, she answered, “Win the World Series!”
In the NLCS you'll find Goldberg, along with her son and grandson, also Padres die-hard fans, in their seats behind the visiting dugout.
Goldberg suffers from macular degeneration, so the game action is mostly blurry. She listens to a radio to know what's going on, and plans on being at every home game to root for the team that long ago captured her heart.
“I could see the game better at home, but the fun thing of being there and the cheering,” said Goldberg. “I think they have a chance to win the whole thing!”
