The San Diego Padres are returning to the playoffs. The Padres clinched their spot in the tournament with Monday night's win over the Milwaukee Brewers at Petco Park ( SD 5, MIL 4 , 11 innings). This marks San Diego's second straight postseason appearance and their fourth in the last six years. They had five postseason appearances during the franchise's first 51 seasons of existence.

With the Padres in, five of the six National League postseason spots have been claimed. The Brewers (NL Central) and Philadelphia Phillies (NL East) have won their divisions, and Chicago Cubs and Los Angeles Dodgers have clinched postseason berths. The Dodgers hold a three-game lead over the Padres in the NL West, plus they have the tiebreaker, so it's really a four-game lead.

The Cincinnati Red

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