PEORIA, Ariz. —— Yes, they play in Peoria. It's what brings people out this way. The desert landscape has long since been replaced by strip malls in the city that hosts the Padres each spring. Still, the open patch of green in the baseball team's spring training complex is an oasis that draws visitors to this northwest suburb of Phoenix.

If it's desert fun you want, Glamis is closer. If it's an Old West experience you seek, you'd better head up the road to Prescott. If it's night life, stick to the east side of the Phoenix metropolis.

But if you're out for a leisurely day of baseball or a conversation with your favorite player, Peoria is a place to be. With two major-league teams sharing one stadium and 12 adjacent fields for workouts and minor-league games, Peoria offers a fix for any baseball junkie.

"Peoria isn't really a destination city," said Joe Connor, a San Diego resident who has compiled a comprehensive guide to spring training. "The Padres and Mariners give you a reason to go there."

That's not a knock against Peoria, mind you, just a reflection of its subordinate status to greater Phoenix.

"It's a suburb," Connor said. "It's a nice suburb, but it's still a suburb."

But it has big-league baseball a month before Opening Day. Which means plenty of North County residents are willing to make the six-hour drive, or to take the short plane hop, to watch their hometown heroes getting ready for the season.

Since 1994, the Padres have shared the Peoria Sports Complex with the Seattle Mariners. The Mariners call the west side of the facility home. The Padres patrol the east side. Each team has six fields for morning workouts or minor-league games. The major-leaguers play in Peoria Stadium in the afternoon.

With two home teams, the stadium hosts a game pretty much every day of the Cactus League season. Even when the Padres are on the road, they usually play within a 35-minute drive of Peoria. The exception comes March 10-12, when the Padres will be 115 miles down the freeway to face the Colorado Rockies, Chicago White Sox and Arizona Diamondbacks in Tucson.

Peoria Stadium is an 11,000-seat ballpark built in the modern retro style that has swept through baseball. It has nary a bad seat. Families with young children might want to go the discount route, spending $5 apiece for general admission tickets for the lawn bleachers beyond the outfield. Kids can run around while the parents relax on a picnic blanket and take in the game.

Spring training is much more than three hours of ball in the afternoon, however. It's viewing an up-and-coming prospect in a morning "B" game. It's playing catch with your kids in a grass walkway while minor-leaguers fight for jobs on the fields around you. It's gathering autographs or even getting your picture taken with a player.

"The thing about the Peoria Complex that I like," Connor said, "is that it's a lot more of a relaxed environment. You go see the Cubs (in Mesa), and it's a free-for-all because there are fans coming from all across the country. … The Padres, most of their fans are coming from San Diego. It's a much easier place to get autographs. The way the complex is designed is one of the nicest.

"It was the first built for two teams, and you have to say it's been a success."

Connor, a San Diego resident, has visited all 26 spring training sites in use —— four complexes house two teams —— and more than 200 ballparks worldwide, so he has a base of comparison. On his Web site, modernerabaseball.com, he sells a detailed visitors guide for spring training in both Arizona and Florida.

But it's not just fans who enjoy the spring training experience. Players, coaches and managers, too, are more relaxed and more apt to stop for a moment and talk to fans, or at the very least to scribble an autograph.

On the Padres' side of the Peoria complex, fans can watch workouts or minor-league games for free. The entrance is near the minor-league fields, off Paradise Lane. From there, fans are free to wander toward the major-league workout fields. They can stand within a couple of feet of the batting cages or grab a spot on some metal bleachers and watch the players go through drills on the practice fields.

The best spot for autographs is near a roped-off walkway between batting cages and the southern practice field. That's where players jog from one drill to another.

Padres closer Trevor Hoffman, one of the friendliest players on the team, suggests fans be aware the players are at work, even if it's at a slower pace.

"The best thing to do," he said, "is to wait until we're coming off the (practice) field, when we're all done. Keep an eye out, and they'll be able to tell when things are wrapping up."

Once the exhibition season begins, Hoffman doesn't mind signing as he heads to the stadium. He's not as eager to sign when he is leaving after pitching, but he usually does. One no-no is to wait outside the players' parking lot. There, Hoffman said, players might think you're working for an autograph dealer. Or they're just in a hurry to finish the day and spend time with the family.

Padres manager Bruce Bochy usually signs on the field before a game. There's little tension before a game, and anyone who isn't warming up has a bit of time to kill. Again, look for the signals.

The more time a fan spends around the players, the easier it will be to get a feel for the routine. And there is another advantage.

"The biggest tip I give fans," Connor said, "is that one of the biggest challenges of spring training is parking. It's a headache the closer you get to the game. You're going to have a hard time finding a spot if you wait until 1 o'clock for a game on a Saturday or Sunday.

"I always say to get there about 10 or 11. The players are warming up, there's less of a crowd. It still amazes me that fans will have lunch at 11 or 12, right off the main road, then get caught waiting 30 minutes to park.

"There's so much more to the spring training experience. Half of spring training comes before the game. It's getting the autographs and things like that."

After the game, Peoria's best bet is dining. The area around the ballpark is crowded with restaurants and watering holes. Most are chain outlets, but even those will require a long wait if you don't make reservations. The restaurants directly across the street have a wait time of more than an hour on a weekend night.

A couple of nearby pubs, the Monastery Too and the Fox and Hound, are the best bet to see a famous face after hours.

The Monastery Too is a good place to kill an afternoon, too, especially if the Padres' big-leaguers are on the road that day. Located in the northeast corner of the parking lot on the Padres' side of the complex, the Monastery Too's patio seating is behind the outfield of two minor-league fields. You can see future big-leaguers play while enjoying food and drink or playing volleyball in the pub's outdoor sand court.

Where to stay

Hotels in the vicinity of the Peoria Sports Complex:

Comfort Suites

• Address: 8473 W. Paradise Lane, Peoria, AZ 85382

• Reservations: (800) 228-5150

• Web site: www.choicehotels.com

Extended Stay America

• Address: 7345 W. Bell Road, Peoria, AZ 85382

• Reservations: (800) 398-7829

• Web site: www.extendedstayamerica.com

Hampton Inn

• Address: 8408 W. Paradise Lane, Peoria, AZ 85382

• Reservations: (800) 426-7866

• Web site: http://hamptoninn.hilton.com

Holiday Inn Express

• Address: 16771 N. 84th Ave., Peoria, AZ 85382

• Reservations: (623) 853-1313

• Web site: www.hiexpressarizona.com

La Quinta Inn & Suites

• Address: 16321 N. 83rd Ave., Peoria, AZ 85382

• Reservations: (623) 487-1900

• Web site: www.lq.com

Ramada Inn

• Address: 8955 Northwest Grand Ave., Peoria AZ 85382

• Reservations: (623) 979-7200

• Web site: www.ramada.com

Residence Inn

• Address: 8435 W. Paradise Lane, Peoria, AZ 85382

• Reservations: (623) 979-2074

• Web site: http://marriott.com/property/propertypage/PHXRP

What to do

Attractions within a short distance of the Peoria Sports Complex:

Challenger Space Center

• What: Interactive exhibits of space and space travel. In March, guests can experience a simulated space mission. Reservations for the mission are required.

• Address: 21170 N. 83rd Ave., Peoria, AZ 85382

• Phone: (623) 322-2001

• Web site: www.azchallenger.org

Desert Schools Coyotes Center

• What: Ice rink

• Address: 15829 N. 83rd Ave., Peoria, AZ 85382

• Phone: (623) 334-1200

• Web site: www.desertschoolscoyotescenter.com

Glendale Arena

• What: Professional sports and entertainment venue. The Sting, an indoor lacrosse team, has home games March 11 and March 25. A monster truck show is March 18-19.

• Address: 9400 W. Maryland Ave., Glendale, AZ 85305

• Phone: (623) 772-3200

• Web site: www.glendalearenaaz.com

Lake Pleasant Regional Park

• What: Boating, camping, fishing and picnics

• Location: Main entrance is two miles north of Route 74, off Castle Hot Springs Road.

• Phone: (602) 372-7460

• Web site: www.peoriaaz.com

Turf Paradise

• What: Horse racing, Fridays through Tuesdays

• Address: 1501 W. Bell Road, Phoenix, AZ 85023

• Phone: (602) 942-1101

• Web site: www.turfparadise.com

Ballpark tour

Baseball fans have nine venues to choose from in Arizona spring training. Fans might want to catch a Padres road game or get an advance look at the competition. Here's a thumbnail guide to the Cactus League sites:

Hi Corbett Field

• Tenant: Colorado Rockies

• Address: 3400 E. Camino Campestre, Tucson, AZ 85716

• From Peoria: Take Highway 101 South to Interstate 10 eastbound and continue about 115 miles to Tucson. Exit I-10 at Broadway and turn eastbound. Turn right at Randolph Way.

• At a glance: Tucked into a residential neighborhood, Hi Corbett offers a glimpse into spring training past. The ballpark was built in the 1930s and remains a testament to function over form. This is baseball in its basic form. Adjacent are two golf courses and the Reid Park Zoo, for those who seek a morning diversion before the game in the afternoon.

HoHoKam Park

• Tenant: Chicago Cubs

• Address: 1235 N. Center St., Mesa, AZ 85201

• From Peoria: Take Highway 101 North and follow the loop to Highway 202. From 202, take Exit 13 South at Country Club Drive. Turn left on Brown Road and left on Center Street.

• At a glance: With 12,500 seats full of Cubs fans, it's the most bustling of Arizona's spring ballparks. It's adjacent to a park with soccer fields and picnic facilities, which beckons all-day family outings. If the game is boring, entertain yourself by counting the number of pale snowbirds burning under the desert sun.

Maryvale Baseball Park

• Tenant: Milwaukee Brewers

• Address: 3600 N. 51st Ave., Phoenix, AZ 85031

• From Peoria: Take Highway 101 South and exit at Indian School Road. Go eastbound. The stadium will be on the right, just before 51st Avenue.

• At a glance: Don't arrive early or stay late here. The stadium was built in a questionable neighborhood in the hope of spurring redevelopment. It didn't. The park itself is pleasant enough, and it has among the easiest access to players. Autograph seekers should congregate near the third-base dugout to catch a Padre or two when they visit.

Peoria Stadium

• Tenants: Padres, Seattle Mariners

• Address: 16101 N. 83rd Ave., Peoria, AZ 85382

• At a glance: The Mariners train on the west side of the facility, and the Padres on the east. The stadium is in the center. Lawn bleachers in the outfield provide a place for fidgety youngsters to run around during the game. If you're not watching your waistline, try the deep-fried Twinkies at a concession stand. They're better than they sound.

Phoenix Municipal Stadium

• Tenant: Oakland Athletics

• Address: 5999 E. Van Buren Ave., Phoenix, AZ 85008

• From Peoria: Take Highway 101 South and exit onto Interstate 10 eastbound. Exit to Highway 202 eastbound. Take the 48th Street exit east, then turn right onto Van Buren Avenue. The stadium is straight ahead.

• At a glance: Once the center of Phoenix baseball, the 40-year-old facility was home to the minor-league Firebirds from 1965-1991. It had the feel of a dilapidated minor-league park, with uncomfortable seating keeping fans away. An $8 million renovation completed last year certainly improved matters. Bring a jacket, because the wind can drop temperatures in a hurry.

Scottsdale Stadium

• Tenant: San Francisco Giants

• Address: 7408 E. Osborn Road, Scottsdale, AZ 85251

• From Peoria: Take Highway 101 North and follow the loop to the Osborn Road exit. Turn westbound and continue to the stadium.

• At a glance: Nestled in the heart of Scottsdale, the stadium has the most upscale neighborhood of any in the Cactus League. Check out the shops, restaurants and night life after the game. Don & Charlie's, a nearby rib and steak joint, is a spring training staple for players and fans alike.

Surprise Stadium

• Tenants: Kansas City Royals, Texas Rangers

• Address: 15946 N. Bullard Ave., Surprise, AZ 85374

• From Peoria: Take Bell Road westbound about seven miles. Turn left at Parkview Place and left onto Major League Boulevard.

• At a glance: The newest of the Cactus League ballparks, Surprise Stadium is only 3 years old and still sparkles. For pure baseball aesthetics, it's already a favorite among players. It's also the place to catch Rangers third baseman Hank Blalock, the Rancho Bernardo High graduate who has reached big-league stardom.

Tempe Diablo Stadium

• Tenant: Los Angeles Angels

• Address: 2200 W. Alameda Drive, Tempe, AZ 85282

• From Peoria: Take Highway 101 South and exit onto Interstate 10 eastbound. Take the Broadway exit and go west to 48th Street. Turn left and the stadium will be a half-mile ahead on the left.

• At a glance: The highlight of this stadium comes during the late innings. Interstate 10 is elevated beyond the outfield walls. As the rush-hour traffic begins to clog up, take comfort in the fact that you're kicking back and watching baseball, far from the worries of the world. Behind the left-field corner, the Wyndham Buttes Resort provides a more eye-pleasing backdrop.

Tucson Electric Park

• Tenants: Arizona Diamondbacks, Chicago White Sox

• Address: 2500 E. Ajo Way, Tucson, AZ 85713

• From Peoria: Take Highway 101 South to Interstate 10 eastbound and continue about 115 miles to Tucson. Exit I-10 at Kino Parkway North and follow the signs to Ajo Way. Turn left to Forgeus.

• At a glance: It's crowded when the local favorite Diamondbacks play. Catch the White Sox if your want a more leisurely day at the ballpark. The iced mochas from the concession cart behind home plate are a must try. The minor-league Tucson Sidewinders play here during the summer.

Contact staff writer Shaun O'Neill at (760) 743-3546 or soneill@nctimes.com.