White Sox 2, Padres 1

Well, we clinched a playoff berth despite losing two of three to the White Sox who, quite frankly, suck this year. Whoever thought that it would be such a good idea to bring Tony LaRussa back was probably the guy who traded away Tatis, and should probably be banned from baseball. Nothing against LaRussa. He's a Hall of Fame Manager, look it up. I don't think that it's a stretch to say that the game has passed him by. Let it go, Tony. You have nothing left to prove.

We punched our ticket before the game, when the Brewers lost to the Marlins in extras, which all but guaranteed our place in the postseason dance. The Phillies could still catch us (and in a way I wish they would), but we will be the five or six seed. This means we will face either the Mets (more likely) or the Cardinals (more desirable). The Mets just got swept by the Braves over the weekend, which means the Braves will probably win the NL East and have the second seed. That leaves us with the Mets as the four seed. Either way, it looks like a best-of-three on the road with the Mets. They will probably throw DeGrom and Scherzer at us, and we'll counter with Darvish and Snell.

All right, so the plus is that we're in the playoffs for the first time since 2008, not counting the 2020 COVID-shortened season. The fact that our owner has spent the money necessary to build a winner has been rewarded, and the community acknowledges that. We have a winning team in town, which is kind of nice, when you consider they're the only show in town, as far as professional major sports go. As a Padres fan, having a winning team is no guarantee, and I am living proof of that. In baseball, we have always been a bottom feeder. So, ring one up for the owner.

The downside is, of course, that we still suck. Too often, we would play down to the level of our competition. There were the games against the Rockies, who beat us 11 times this season, if I'm not mistaken. The Tigers beat us...I know, right? We lost too many games against average teams like the Marlins, the Nationals, the Pirates, and the White Sox, among others. Even after the big trade, our offense still looks paralyzed at times. Surprisingly, even Manny joined in on the suckfest yesterday. First and third, one out, eighth inning, down by one, and he pops out. Yet, based on last year's postseason results, we are supposed to grab the opportunity and roll to a World Series win. I highly doubt that, it's more likely we'll get rolled in two games. 

But heck, that's why they play the games, right? Bring on the Mets! Actually, we need to travel there, for one. But there are still three games left against the Giants, a team we have owned this season.