PHOENIX (AP) — Luis Arraez hit two doubles and a triple, Yu Darvish pitched 5 1/3 gritty innings and the San Diego Padres used a four-run first to beat the sliding Arizona Diamondbacks 5-3 on Friday night. The Padres — who had already clinched a postseason berth earlier this week — secured the No. 4 spot in the National League bracket, meaning they'll host a best-of-three Wild Card Series next week in San Diego.
“It's amazing,” outfielder Fernando Tatis Jr. said. “Can't wait for that energy at Petco.
The fans are going to be crazy and it'll be a great atmosphere.” As for the Diamondbacks (88-72), they sit just behind the Mets (87-71) and Braves (87-71) in a tight race for the final two NL wild cards. The D-backs — who have lost four of five — have a slightly lower winning percentage.
Atlanta and New York have played two fewer games because Hurricane Helene washed out two games of their crucial series earlier this week. The teams would play a doubleheader Monday in Atlanta if playoff positioning is still undecided. The Mets and Braves hold tiebreakers over the defending NL champion Diamondbacks should they finish with the same record.
Arizona lost the season series to both teams. Arraez (.314) is trying to hold off Shohei Ohtani (.
309) and Marcell Ozuna (.308) for the NL batting title. If he wins, it would be his third batting crown in three years for three different teams, which has never been done in MLB history.
The Padres will be able to rest their regula.
