MIAMI -- Colt Morton figured that the best thing about being in Miami this weekend was that he would get to see his family, who were planning to drive from their home an hour away, in Wellington, to watch the Padres' series against the Marlins.

It turns out that the rookie catcher had much more to look forward to, as he was in the starting lineup for Friday's game, the first of three between San Diego and Florida. For Morton, it was his third start this season and clearly his most special.

"I'm excited about it," Morton said. "It's fun to be in the big leagues anyway, and now I get to come home and play in front of friends and family. I walked onto the field today when I got here. ... It was cool seeing the other side of it."

Morton, a native of Fort Lauderdale, attended countless games at Dolphin Stadium and was in the stands as a fan during the postseason in 1997 and 2003, when the Marlins won their two World Series titles.

Mostly, though, Morton's memories are of going to Marlins games with friends and coaches from The King's Academy, from which he graduated in 2000 before attending North Carolina State University.

"Some of my coaches, we would come and watch the catchers here," said Morton. "Being able to watch people excited about baseball was cool [in 1997 and 2003]. When they were winning ... you realized just how big a scale it was. We were playing in front of 20 people in high school."

Morton got the start on Friday as the Padres opted to rest Josh Bard, who caught the previous 11 of 12 games. This is the second time Morton has caught starting pitcher Justin Germano. He has also caught Greg Maddux.

Morton, 25, is still looking for his first Major League hit. He's 0-for-9 this season since being recalled from Double-A San Antonio on April 8. He was 0-for-1 in 2007 after making his Major League debut on Sept. 21, popping out as a pinch-hitter.