Welcome to SB Nation Reacts, a survey of fans across MLB. Throughout the year we ask questions of the most plugged-in Padres fans and fans across the country.
The baseball season is often referred to as a marathon and not a sprint, but the San Diego Padres and the Arizona Diamondbacks appear to be in a sprint to the finish, which will likely decide who gets the final Wild Card spot in the National League.
The Padres have played 145 games, but the final 17 games will be some of the most important games played this
season. San Diego has won two of the first three games against the Washington Nationals and have a chance to sweep the series this afternoon. This opportunity comes after the Padres took two of three in from the New York Yankees to start the current home stand.
The Diamondbacks have had similar success and have won the first two games of their current series against the Kansas City Royals. Both of the wins have come in extra innings and like the Padres, Arizona will have a chance to sweep the series this evening and will have the benefit of knowing the outcome of the San Diego game. Arizona also won the series against the Houston Astros 2-1 leading into the Kansas City series.
The Padres and Diamondbacks have put some distance between the other contenders in the St. Louis Cardinals and Miami Marlins, so unless both teams completely collapse the Chicago Cubs and Philadelphia Phillies will occupy the top two Wild Card spots and San Diego or Arizona will take the third and final Wild Card spot. The two teams are scheduled to meet in the final series of the season at Petco Park on Sept. 25-27. That series has the potential to be a pre-postseason playoff series, but both teams have time before then to create separation from one another.
The Padres will go on the road after today with three against the San Francisco Giants and four against the Colorado Rockies. San Diego returns home for a three-game set against Miami then goes up to Los Angeles for three against the Dodgers before coming home to host Arizona. The Diamondbacks have three home series with games against the Texas Rangers, Miami Marlins and New York Yankees. Arizona then plays at Colorado for three before playing San Diego in the season finale.
There is a chance for one team to make a move in the remaining series before they meet at Petco Park, but they seem to be mirroring one another to this point. The Gaslamp Ball Reacts Survey this week asks respondents if they think the final series between the Padres and Diamondbacks will decide the postseason fate of the Friars.
