The Diamondbacks walked out of Petco Park with another loud win Friday night, pounding the Padres 11-4 and tightening the National League Wild Card race to a one-game gap.
Arizona has won six straight, and its push now comes down to a simple finish-line equation. With two games remaining, any combination of two Diamondbacks victories and Phillies losses will send Arizona to the postseason and leave Philadelphia out.
Quick facts
- Arizona beat San Diego 11-4 on Friday at Petco Park.
- The Phillies lost 2-0 to the Rays, moving Arizona within one game of the final NL Wild Card berth.
- The Diamondbacks hold the tiebreaker over Philadelphia.
- Lars Nootbaar hit Casey Mize’s first pitch of the game for a home run.
- Brandon Pfaadt worked 7 2/3 innings, giving Arizona’s bullpen a needed breather.
The early work looked familiar. After sweeping the Rockies in three games while scoring in the first inning each time, Arizona jumped on Mize immediately. Nootbaar sent the opening pitch into the right-field seats, setting the tone for a three-run first.
The Diamondbacks added one run in the second, two more in the third and another in the fourth, building a cushion that let Pfaadt settle into his outing. He carried the workload deep into the night and spared the relief corps from a heavy assignment.
That length could matter just as much as the 11 runs. Corbin Burnes was placed on the injured list rather than taking Saturday night’s start, and Pfaadt’s 7 2/3 innings leave Arizona with the option of a bullpen game while keeping its best relievers available.
The Diamondbacks still need assistance from Tampa Bay, which has already delivered one timely result by blanking Philadelphia. The Phillies have now lost three in a row, while Arizona keeps finding early offense, cleaner innings and a little more belief with every win.
