Petco Park had the sound of October on Saturday night, even with the calendar still offering a few turns before the postseason arrives. Fernando Tatis Jr. tied the game with a fourth-inning blast to straightaway center, Ethan Salas delivered the final swing, and the Padres walked off the Marlins, 7-6, before a packed and roaring home crowd.
A late-night win with a playoff feel
Tatis gave San Diego a jolt in the fourth when he drove a game-tying homer to center field. He made the trip around the bases with his usual confidence as the building came alive behind him.
The Padres saved their biggest moment for the finish. With Jake Cronenworth aboard, Salas lined a base hit into center field to bring him home with the winning run. The 20-year-old was quickly swallowed up by celebrating teammates while the crowd rose around the diamond.
- Final score: Padres 7, Marlins 6.
- Fernando Tatis Jr. hit a tying home run in the fourth inning.
- Ethan Salas singled to center field to score Jake Cronenworth for the walk-off victory.
- The win came in front of a full Petco Park crowd that treated the finish like a postseason night.
Padres move into the second Wild Card position
San Diego’s win carried weight beyond one loud finish. The Phillies had lost to the Mets earlier in the evening, allowing the Padres to move past Philadelphia and take sole possession of the National League’s second Wild Card berth.
The Padres sit a half-game behind the Cubs for the top Wild Card spot, a position that would bring a playoff series to San Diego. Arizona, however, stayed in the chase by walking off the Yankees, meaning the Padres cannot secure a postseason berth before Tuesday.
- San Diego holds the second NL Wild Card spot outright.
- The Padres are one-half game behind the Cubs for the top Wild Card position.
- Arizona’s walk-off win over the Yankees delayed San Diego’s earliest possible clinching date until Tuesday.
From Miami sweep to a new September picture
The contrast with late July is hard to miss. When the Padres arrived in Miami on July 24 for their previous meeting with the Marlins, they were three games below .500 and four games outside the playoff field. Five clubs, Miami among them, stood ahead of them in the race.
San Diego had just dropped a series in Atlanta and was struggling badly enough that there was a legitimate case for general manager A.J. Preller to move players at the Trade Deadline rather than add to a contender.
Instead, the Padres swept that Miami series and have played their way into a far different position since. They went from an uncertain club on the edge of the race to a team pressing the top of the Wild Card standings and nearing a third straight postseason appearance.
That would be new ground for the franchise. The Padres have never reached the playoffs in three consecutive seasons. On a night when Tatis supplied the thunder and Salas supplied the last hit, Petco Park made clear it is ready to find out what those October games might sound like.
