San Diego left Dodger Stadium with a 5-1 win Wednesday and a postseason berth close enough to see. The Padres can clinch before Thursday night’s game in Los Angeles if Arizona loses in Colorado, or they can handle it themselves with a victory over the Dodgers.
Key takeaways
- The Padres are one win, or one Diamondbacks loss, from reaching the playoffs for a third consecutive year.
- San Diego moved a game ahead of both the Cubs and Phillies for the National League’s top Wild Card position.
- Manny Machado’s two-run shot, his 29th homer this season, opened the scoring against Yoshinobu Yamamoto.
- David Morgan escaped a bases-loaded fourth inning after Ethan Salas successfully challenged a pivotal ball-four call to Shohei Ohtani.
- The Padres’ bullpen covered 5 2/3 scoreless innings after manager Craig Stammen pulled Robbie Ray in the fourth.
A playoff berth could arrive before first pitch
Arizona is scheduled to finish its Colorado series roughly seven hours before the Padres and Dodgers begin Thursday’s game. That means San Diego could learn it has clinched while preparing for batting practice at Dodger Stadium.
If the Diamondbacks win, the Padres still have a clean path. They need one victory from their final four regular-season games: Thursday in Los Angeles or any of the three weekend meetings with Arizona at Petco Park.
Clinching early would give San Diego room to arrange its postseason pitching plans and ease the burden on late-inning relievers. But the club is chasing more than entry into the bracket. With Chicago and Philadelphia both losing Wednesday, the Padres now own a one-game edge on each club for the league’s first Wild Card slot.
That lead carries extra weight because San Diego has lost the relevant tiebreakers. Staying ahead of both challengers is the assignment. Do that, and the Padres would host the Wild Card Series at Petco Park, where they are 49-29 this season. Game 1 is scheduled for Tuesday.
“We have to take care of our business,” Machado said. “We have to win big games.”
Machado also made clear that a home series is the preferred route. “We definitely want to play in front of our home crowd and bring the Wild Card to San Diego,” he said.
Machado’s swing and a fourth-inning escape
One night after being blanked in the series opener, the Padres found their breakthrough against Yamamoto. Machado turned on an inside sinker and drove it 409 feet to center field for a two-run homer. It was his 29th home run of 2026 and the 29th of his career against the Dodgers, his highest total against any opponent.
The blast came after a stretch in which San Diego had been rolling, winning 13 of 14 entering the Dodgers series, though much of that run had come against lesser opposition. Wednesday offered a tougher October-style test, and the Padres answered it with power, quick decisions and bullpen work.
“We needed that,” Stammen said of Machado’s homer. “We hadn’t scored for a bit, and it broke the ice.”
Stammen managed the fourth inning with the urgency of a playoff game. Robbie Ray had not surrendered a run and was largely sharp, but with one out and the bases loaded, the manager went to right-hander Morgan for the matchup against Tommy Edman and Mookie Betts.
Morgan got Edman to lift a sacrifice fly, bringing home the Dodgers’ only run. He then walked Betts, leaving Ohtani at the plate with the game hanging in the balance.
After Morgan fell behind 3-1, his next fastball was initially called ball four. Ohtani started toward first and the scoreboard indicated a tie game. Salas, the rookie catcher, immediately asked for a challenge. Replay showed the pitch caught the upper edge of the strike zone, changing the call to strike two.
“If that pitch is half a hair higher, it’s a ball, and I still think it’s the right challenge there,” Salas said. “I’m comfortable with the result either way.”
Ohtani fouled off two pitches before Morgan finished him with a 98 mph sinker. The Padres held their one-run advantage, added two more runs in the fifth, and let the bullpen close the door with 5 2/3 scoreless frames.
It was the sort of formula San Diego may need again soon: a timely long ball, an aggressive pitching move and relievers asked to protect narrow margins. The Padres are not officially in yet, but they are one result away.
