Sports
What is the Diamondbacks’ postseason fate after finishing the regular season with a strong 11-2 victory against the Padres? ‘A guide to the playoff hopes’
Ketel Marte’s two-run home run capped a six-run fourth inning, helping the Arizona Diamondbacks stay in the National League wild-card race with an 11-2 victory against the playoff-bound San Diego Padres on Sunday in their last regular-season game.
Arizona finished the season 89-73 and will not know if they make the playoffs until Monday’s doubleheader between the New York Mets and Atlanta Braves, both of which had 88-72 records.
If the Mets or Braves sweep the doubleheader, the Diamondbacks will advance to the playoffs. However, if they split the games, the Mets and Braves will advance, while Arizona is eliminated.
“It’s weird. We don’t even know who to root for,” said Diamondbacks outfielder Corbin Carroll. “You just wait to see who wins the first game and root for them in the second. We’ll work out here and be ready to go.”
Arizona is still waiting to hear out whether they will go to Milwaukee for a best-of-three Division Series against the Brewers.
“It sucks,” said Diamondbacks manager Torey Lovullo. “But there’s nothing we can do about it. We made this bed. We got to sleep in it, but we’re going to hope for the best. They’re two great franchises, two great managers, and I don’t think either have the gene of laying down.”
Lovullo understands how difficult it is to sweep a doubleheader. “It’s always a challenge,” he said. “It’s going to be a battle of will, and the fatigue factor, but they’re both going to be hungry.”
San Diego (93-69) will learn on Monday whether their Wild Card Series opponent will be the Mets or the Braves.
Luis Arraez of the Padres hit a double in the sixth inning, going 1 for 3 and raising his batting average to.314, putting him on track to win his third straight batting crown. He is the first player since 1900 to win three batting titles for three different teams.
Brandon Pfaadt (11-10) allowed two runs and three hits in 5 1/3 innings while striking out nine for the Diamondbacks, who had lost five of their previous six games.
“We used a little bit of everything,” Pfaadt said about his pitch selection. “When they put up a 6-spot in the fourth that kind of helps the pitching side.”
Ryne Nelson, who was recalled from the disabled list on Friday, worked three innings for his first major league save and finished with a four-hitter.
In the fourth inning, Christian Walker doubled off Martín Pérez (5-6), sparking a five-hit streak. Eugenio Suárez’s single pulled home Walker for his 100th RBI of the season.
Jake McCarthy’s run-scoring single, Gabriel Moreno’s RBI double, and Geraldo Perdomo’s grounder extended the advantage to 4-1, before Marte launched his 36th home run into the left-field second deck.
In 3 2/3 innings, Pérez allowed six runs and eight hits. In the sixth inning, Suárez hit his 30th home run off Matt Waldron, while Randal Grichuk connected for his 12th with a man on base in the eighth. After the All-Star break, Suárez hit 20 home runs, trailing only Shohei Ohtani and Aaron Judge.
Elias Diaz and Jake Cronenworth drove in runs for the Padres, who improved their season by 11 victories over last year, finishing with their second-highest total ever, trailing only the 1998 NL pennant champions.
With a crowd of 38,892, Arizona’s season attendance reached 2,341,876, the highest total since 2008, when they drew 2,509,924.
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