The San Diego Padres secured the No. 4 seed in the National League playoffs and home-field advantage in their upcoming Wild Card Series after defeating the Arizona Diamondbacks 10-7 on Saturday at Petco Park, setting up a postseason rematch with the Chicago Cubs.
For a second consecutive postseason, the San Diego Padres and Chicago Cubs are set to clash in the National League Wild Card Series, according to Major League Baseball. This time, however, the matchup comes with a significant perk for San Diego.
The Padres clinched home-field advantage by out-punching the Diamondbacks in a 10-7 victory at Petco Park, cementing their spot as the No. 4 seed in the National League playoffs. The win also guaranteed that every game of the best-of-three series against the fifth-seeded Cubs begins Tuesday in San Diego.
Manny Machado Hits 30th Homer and Reaches Milestone
The offensive catalyst arrived in the fourth inning when veteran third baseman Manny Machado drove a three-run home run into the right-field porch off reliever José Cabrera, turning a 4-3 deficit into a 6-4 lead that the Padres never relinquished.
“We’re playing at home now. Obviously playing at home is great. It’s going to be fun. … Keep playing baseball like we have been, and I think we’ll be in a good spot.”
The milestone blast marked Machado’s 30th home run of the season, representing the eighth 30-homer campaign of his career and tying him with Arizona’s Nolan Arenado and Philadelphia’s Kyle Schwarber for the most among active players. It was also his fourth 30-homer season with San Diego, moving him into a franchise tie with Adrián González. The home run was the 399th of Machado's career.
Historic 90-Win Season Backed by a Sellout Crowd at Petco Park
The victory secured the Padres a club-record third consecutive 90-win season, finishing the regular stretch at 90-71. A sellout crowd of 44,698 fans turned out at Petco Park, waving gold rally towels in what served as a festive dress rehearsal for October baseball. San Diego finished the year with 50 wins at home, a major factor for a team that sat at 50-53 earlier in the campaign before mounting a late-summer surge.
Xander Bogaerts also contributed a solo home run in the fifth inning for his 13th of the year, while Jake Cronenworth added a crucial two-run single in the sixth to widen the gap to 10-4. Despite a rocky ninth inning in which Mason Miller surrendered three runs, rookie catcher Ethan Salas and the bullpen locked down the win.
Rematch With the Chicago Cubs
The upcoming series offers the Padres an immediate chance at redemption. The Cubs eliminated San Diego 2-1 in last year’s wild-card round at Wrigley Field. Stammen’s squad enters the postseason with momentum and the comfort of home-field advantage.
“It’ll be highly contested. They’re the ones that knocked us out of the playoffs last year so we’ll have to bring our A game.”
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