Padres Announce Starting Lineup for Massive Series Opener vs Diamondbacks

The Padres still have plenty to play for.

Sep 23, 2026; Los Angeles, California, USA; San Diego Padres right fielder Fernando Tatis Jr. (23) congratulates third baseman Manny Machado (13) after hitting a two-run home run during the fourth inning against the Los Angeles Dodgers at Dodger Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

The San Diego Padres are back home after clinching a spot in the 2026 postseason and welcoming the Arizona Diamondbacks into Petco Park to close out the regular season.

The Diamondbacks have to win to stay alive in the postseason race. The Padres, on the other hand, are looking to secure the top wild-card spot that would come with a home wild-card series.

“It’s important,” Padres president of baseball operations A.J. Preller said in Thursday's postseason-clinching celebration about securing a home playoff series. “We love playing in front of our fans at Petco. We’re a very good team at home. We’ll talk about about it the next couple days. It’s the next to-do list for us.”

Added All-Star closer Mason Miller: “Just trying to get a home playoff series at Petco. We know how special that place is.”

The Padres and Diamondbacks have met 10 times this season, with each team winning five games.

Padres vs Diamondbacks Pitching Matchup on Friday

Right-handed pitcher Casey Mize is taking the mound on Friday night looking to prove he deserves a spot on the team's wild-card roster.

Mize has struggled mightily over his nine starts since being acquired at the trade deadline, sporting a 6.64 ERA with 24 strikeouts to 17 walks over 40.2 innings.

He's already faced the Diamondbacks twice this season. While with the Tigers, he allowed one run over six innings with nine strikeouts. When facing them with the Padres, he allowed eight runs on nine hits over 3.1 innings.

Opposite Mize will be right-hander Brandon Pfaadt, who has a 3.72 ERA across 128.1 innings. In three appearances (two starts) against the Padres this season, he owns a 2.45 ERA over 14.2 innings.

Padres Starting Lineup

Fernando Tatis Jr., 2B
Dustin Harris, RF
Manny Machado, DH
Ty France, 1B
Jackson Merrill, CF
Xander Bogaerts, SS
Luis Campusano, C
Jake Cronenworth, 3B
Samad Taylor, LF

How to Watch Padres vs Diamondbacks on Friday

First pitch for San Diego Padres vs. Arizona Diamondbacks on Friday, Sept. 25 is 6:40 p.m. PT/9:40 p.m. ET. The game will be broadcast on Padres.TV and in the MLB app.

The Padres announced that games will also be available via cable on the following channels:

Cox (Channel 83)
DirecTV (Channel 694-3)
AT&T Uverse (Channel 781 or 1781)
Spectrum (Channel 305 or 443)

Games will be broadcast on the radio on 97.3 The Fan (in English) and XEMO 860 (in Spanish).

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