Padres, Phillies Even NLDS Series

As fall arrives and the seasons shift (kind of), Americans make numerous adjustments to their lifestyles. They change what they wear, turn the A/C off (again, maybe not Florida) and eat warmer foods. They also watch playoff baseball. 

After the conclusion of the wild card round, divisional round games are underway in the MLB playoffs, with Philadelphia (95-67) and San Diego (93-69) each pulling out critical victories. The Padres beat the Dodgers 10-2 and the Phillies eked by the Mets (89-73) 7-6, each leveling their NL divisional series 1-1.

Cardiac Castellanos

After dropping the first game of the series Saturday, the Phillies knew a victory against the Mets was critical before heading to New York. For much of the contest, it appeared Philadelphia would make its way to the Big Apple down 2-0.

Throughout Sunday’s game, the Mets flashed their typical heroics. Taking an early lead behind a Mark Vientos two-run home run, New York shut out the Phillies until the sixth inning, with pitcher Luis Severino only needing 64 pitches to do it. Severino’s luck ran out on the bat of Bryce Harper, as the 31-year-old first baseman launched the ball into dead center, opening the floodgates. From there, two other Phillies homered.

BACK#RingTheBell pic.twitter.com/zv4zvNZSH3

— Philadelphia Phillies (@Phillies) October 6, 2024

The Mets, tapping into the aforementioned heroics, weren’t dead. With the Phillies up 6-4 in the ninth inning, Vientos, again, served as the Mets savior, hitting his second two-run home run of the game.

Tied 6-6, the second NLDS game went into the bottom of the ninth.

With darkness starting to fall over Citizens Bank Park, Nick Castellanos stepped up to the plate. Facing two outs, the right fielder looked across the crowd of Philadelphia faithful. Moments later, they erupted as Castellanos jogged down the first-base line while the ball traveled into left field, allowing Trea Turner to come home. The score secured a critical victory for Philadelphia before hitting the road for the first time in the NL East series.

Just what the doctor ordered pic.twitter.com/MpolvfnfGS

— Philadelphia Phillies (@Phillies) October 7, 2024

An NL West Showdown

Having finished the season with the MLB’s best record (98-64), the Dodgers continued their success Saturday. The Padres lost game one of the NLDS 7-5 to Los Angeles.

Making the two-hour drive (or more likely, momentary flight) to L.A., San Diego sought a victory over the Dodgers to even the series Sunday. They got exactly that.

Jumping out to a quick 1-0 lead behind a Fernando Tatis Jr. home run, the Padres never let the Dodgers into the game. The San Diego offense was prolific when Tatis Jr. launched another long ball, along with Jackson Merrill, Xander Bogaerts, David Peralta and Kyle Higashioka all getting in on the NLDS home run action.

Tati time ⏰ pic.twitter.com/nxK6CW6gyR

— San Diego Padres (@Padres) October 7, 2024

It wasn’t just an impressive offensive showing from the Padres, though.

Making the start, Yu Darvish notched an efficient 83-pitch seven innings. Allowing only one run, Darvish turned back the clock to his dominant Dodgers days.

Dominance from @faridyu. pic.twitter.com/1pmQixWJwx

— San Diego Padres (@Padres) October 7, 2024

The Padres closed the affair with a confident 10-2 win.

Up Next

After each securing series-evening victories, the Padres and Phillies have different paths ahead.

Philadelphia will head on the road to the divisional-rival Mets, looking to take a game in Citi Field. The Padres, however, will return home. Bringing the Dodgers down I-5, San Diego can secure a strong lead over L.A. on its home turf.

Each series will resume Tuesday, with the Phillies-Mets first pitch at 5:08 p.m. and the Dodgers-Padres at 9:08 p.m.