Jan 08, 2008 4:51 PM EST

Pope Benedict XVI will celebrate Mass from center field at the Washington Nationals' new ballpark during his three-day visit to the city in mid-April, officials said.

With thousands of people already requesting tickets to the April 17 event, officials with the Archdiocese of Washington said they wanted as many as possible to attend the Mass. They considered placing the altar in the second base area but realized they could fit in an extra 4,000 seats by putting it in center field -- for a total of 45,000 seats.

Via WUSA-9