Padres Upset Dodgers in NLDS; Advance to NLCS to Face Phillies

In a monumental upset, the San Diego Padres defeated the Los Angeles Dodgers 5-3 in Game 4 of the NLDS to win the series 3-1.

Down 3-0 in the 7th inning, the Padres scored five runs capped off with a two-run single by Jake Cronenworth. 

Let's remember that the Padres finished 22 games back of the Dodgers in the NL West and went 5-13 against a team who won a franchise record 111 games. The Dodgers then won the first game of the NLDS. But the Padres then won three straight games against the Dodgers - something they hadn't done all year. As the late Joe Garagiola said, "Baseball is a funny game."

The Padres advance to the NLCS for the first time since 1998 and will host the Philadelphia Phillies beginning Tuesday night. The Phillies, of course, upset another 100 plus win team in the Atlanta Braves in their division series. San Diego has never won a World Series title.

I had questioned whether a bye could hurt. While the Astros swept the Mariners, the Dodgers and Braves with 212 wins between them are done. Meanwhile, the New York Yankees are one loss away from that same fate as the Cleveland Guardians scored three runs in the 9th to take a 2-1 lead in the ALDS.