Padres clinch playoff spot; seek home-field series

After struggling offensively and patching together a pitching staff, the San Diego Padres hit their stride shortly after the All-Star break. Playing under .500 baseball up to July 23 (50-53), the Friars have a 39-17 record since then. The MLB trade deadline brought in two starting pitchers who have not dominated since their arrival but have helped stabilize the rotation. Nick Pivetta's return gave the organization a third starter, joining Michael King and Walker Buehler as bulldogs at the start of the rotation.

With that, the offense figured it out, and the stars are playing like stars, with the role players making big contributions. Sweeping the Miami Marlins to start the week, the Padres took two of three from the Los Angeles Dodgers in Chavez Ravine to clinch a Wild Card spot for the third straight season and for the fifth time in the past seven seasons.