09/26/26 11:15:00
Printable Page
09/26 23:13 CDT Machado homers as Padres beat D-backs 10-7 to clinch home field
in wild-card round vs Cubs
Machado homers as Padres beat D-backs 10-7 to clinch home field in wild-card
round vs Cubs
SAN DIEGO (AP) --- Manny Machado hit a three-run homer and the San Diego Padres
beat the Arizona Diamondbacks 10-7 on Saturday to secure the No. 4 seed in the
National League playoffs.
San Diego will host every game in a best-of-three Wild Card Series against the
fifth-seeded Chicago Cubs beginning Tuesday. The winner will face the NL
Central champion Milwaukee Brewers in a best-of-five Division Series.
The Cubs eliminated the Padres 2-1 in the wild-card round at Chicago last
season.
Xander Bogaerts also went deep for the Padres (90-71), who clinched their
club-record third straight 90-win season and seventh in team history. They
earned their franchise-best third consecutive postseason berth with a 4-2 win
Thursday night at the NL West champion Los Angeles Dodgers.
The Diamondbacks had their six-game winning streak snapped but remain alive for
the NL's third wild-card spot. They are one game behind Philadelphia going into
Sunday's season finales and hold the tiebreaker. The Phillies lost their fourth
straight game, 12-1 to AL East champion Tampa Bay.
Arizona's Gabriel Moreno hit an RBI single and went 1 for 3 with a walk to keep
his average at .311, just ahead of injured Phillies infielder Luis Arraez
(.310) in the race for the NL batting title.
Moreno's spot in the order came up after Mason Miller loaded the bases with no
outs in the ninth, but the Diamondbacks sent pinch-hitter Adrian Del Castillo
to the plate and he struck out. Miller allowed three runs.
Machado hit a 1-1 pitch from Jose Cabrera (0-4) into the home run porch in the
right-field corner for a 6-4 lead in the fourth. That gave Machado his eighth
career 30-homer season, tying Arizona's Nolan Arenado and Philadelphia's Kyle
Schwarber for the most among active players.
It was his fourth 30-homer season with San Diego, tying Adrian Gonzalez for the
most in team history.
The Diamondbacks went ahead 4-3 in the top of the fourth on James McCann's
two-run homer to straightaway center off Walker Buehler.
Arizona led 2-1 in the third before the Padres went in front on Ty France's RBI
groundout and Gavin Sheets' RBI double that center fielder Tim Tawa lost in the
lights and twilight sky.
Bogaerts hit a solo homer in the two-run fifth, and Jake Cronenworth added a
two-run single in the sixth.
Yuki Matsui (5-1) got the win in relief.
Up next
Diamondbacks RHP Michael Soroka (9-5, 3.31 ERA) is scheduled to pitch the
season finale Sunday. The Padres hadn't announced a starter.
___
See AP's full MLB coverage here
|
