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Padres Notes: SD Clinches Postseason, Wild-Card Game 1 Starter Revealed, Casey Mize Role in Jeopardy

Catch up on all the latest Padres news and notes.
Gabe Smallson|
Sep 24, 2026; Los Angeles, California, USA; San Diego Padres right fielder Fernando Tatis Jr. (23) greets teammates after defeating the Los Angeles Dodgers at Dodger Stadium. Mandatory Credit: William Liang-Imagn Images
Sep 24, 2026; Los Angeles, California, USA; San Diego Padres right fielder Fernando Tatis Jr. (23) greets teammates after defeating the Los Angeles Dodgers at Dodger Stadium. Mandatory Credit: William Liang-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

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San Diego Padres

The San Diego Padres beat the Los Angeles Dodgers, 4-2, on Thursday evening as they not only improved to 89-70 on the year, but clinched a spot in the postseason for the third season in a row, a franchise record.

Right-hander Nick Pivetta struck out seven across 4.2 scoreless innings of work. Offensively, superstar Fernando Tatis Jr. and rookie backstop Ethan Salas each had two hits in the win.

As all eyes shift to the postseason, the starting pitcher for Game 1 of the wild-card series was revealed by manager Craig Stammen. The man to start the quest through October leads his team in ERA, starts, strikeouts and innings pitched this season.

In other news, right-hander Casey Mize's role moving forward appears to be in jeopardy. Stammen spoke on his struggling starter and the 6.64 ERA he has accumulated since being traded to San Diego.

“He hasn’t been who he was previously in the season,” Stammen said. “But he’s got a track record of being a very solid major league pitcher for a long time. … There are ups and downs throughout the season. And right now he’s just in a little down period. But we’ve got a week left in the season. He’s probably got one more start left. We value him as a big piece of our pitching staff.”

Mize himself also addressed his recent skid since the trade, but with an All-Star nod and many quality starts to his name, he must keep working to get back to that place in October.

“It’s just obvious that I’m not able to consistently put good ones together like I was early for the first two-thirds of the season or whatever,” Mize said. “This is a great team, and they deserve a lot better than what I’ve been giving them. But I’m giving everything I got, man. I’m laying it all out there every time, every pitch, and unfortunately it just hasn’t been good enough for myself or for this team. And I’m gonna keep doing that, keep freaking working at it and giving everything I got."

Here’s all the latest Padres news and stories (click the headline for the full article):

Padres Already Announce Game 1 Postseason Starter, If Everything Goes to Plan

Padres Manager Addresses Casey Mize's Spot on Postseason Roster

Padres Beat Dodgers to Clinch Postseason Berth for Historic Third Straight Season

Padres Announce Starting Lineup for Potential Postseason Clincher vs Dodgers

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Gabe Smallson
GABE SMALLSON

Gabe Smallson is a sportswriter based in Los Angeles with a focus in sports and entertainment content. Gabe has previously worked at Newsweek and Dodgers Nation. He graduated from San Francisco State University in 2020 and received his Masters of Science at the University of Southern California in 2025.

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