NL Wild Card Race Heads to Final Week With Cubs, Padres Tied

Chicago and San Diego sit level at 87-69 with six games left, Philadelphia a game back, and Arizona needing a miracle.

The National League Wild Card race is going down to the final six games of the regular season, with the Chicago Cubs and San Diego Padres tied at 87-69 and the Philadelphia Phillies one game behind at 86-70. The Arizona Diamondbacks trail the field and would need an unlikely run to reach the postseason.

Tiebreakers could prove decisive. Chicago holds the head-to-head edge over both San Diego and Philadelphia, while the Phillies own the tiebreaker over the Padres after sweeping the season series 6-0.

Each contender faces a different closing schedule. Philadelphia opens at home against the Milwaukee Brewers, who own baseball's best record at 98 wins, before hosting the Tampa Bay Rays. The Phillies are expected to start Zack Wheeler and Aaron Nola in the Milwaukee series but are not expected to use Cristopher Sánchez or the injured Jesús Luzardo.

Chicago hosts the eliminated Miami Marlins before closing on the road against a Boston Red Sox team that has already clinched a postseason spot. The Cubs will finish the regular season without Alex Bregman, who suffered multiple facial fractures when he was struck by a foul ball Sunday and could potentially return in October. Pete Crow-Armstrong, with 45 home runs this season, remains a driving force in the lineup.

San Diego enters the week as the hottest team in the race, having won 13 of its last 14 games. The Padres visit the Los Angeles Dodgers, who have clinched the NL West, before closing in Arizona. Fernando Tatis Jr., Jackson Merrill and Ty France have keyed the offense, and closer Mason Miller anchors a bullpen considered one of the team's biggest strengths.