Salas Walk-Off Single Lifts Padres in 10

Rookie Ethan Salas singled home Jake Cronenworth from third with one out in the 10th inning Saturday night, and the San Diego Padres beat the Miami Marlins 7-6 to trim their wild-card magic number to three. Cronenworth, the automatic runner, moved up on a wild pitch. Salas, called up Sept. 1 as the club's top prospect, punched an 0-2 pitch from Josh Ekness up the middle and got buried in an outfield dogpile.

The walk-off came one inning after pinch-hitter Griffin Conine crushed a 427-foot tying homer off Mason Miller with one out in the ninth, his 17th of the year. Miller was trying for a five-out save when Conine turned around a 102-mph four-seamer. David Morgan earned the win to improve to 4-1. Petco went from quiet tension to full sprint in two swings.

Twelve of thirteen

San Diego has won 12 of its last 13 and sits tied with the Chicago Cubs at 86-69 for the National League's top wild-card spot, though the Cubs hold the tiebreaker. The Phillies lost 10-3 to the Mets and dropped a game back. The earliest the Padres can clinch a wild-card berth is Tuesday night at NL West champion Los Angeles.

Fernando Tatis Jr. tied the game at 5 with a leadoff solo shot in the fourth off Eury Pérez. Samad Taylor also went deep. Miami had jumped ahead 5-1 through three against Casey Mize, including Otto Lopez's two-run blast. Ty France and Dustin Harris kept stacking doubles as San Diego clawed back, with Harris extending a nine-game hitting streak along the way.

Fantasy rooms that already knew Salas from September call-up buzz can stamp the walk-off single and keep him on the watch list. Do not invent everyday catching volume from one pinch swing. Treat Conine's ninth-inning bomb as the bridge and Salas as the dagger that finished a 12-of-13 heater.

Salas had already flashed September juice earlier in the call-up window, but a walk-off single with the magic number on the board is the kind of clip that sticks on Smacktok boards. The Padres still share the top wild-card line with Chicago. Tuesday at Dodger Stadium is the earliest clinch date. Saturday just made the countdown louder.

Sweep watch Sunday

The Padres go for a second sweep of Miami this season on Sunday with Walker Buehler lined up opposite Sandy Alcantara. Magic number three. Walk-off night in Petco.

Zero-and-two. Up the middle. Dogpile in the outfield. That is Salas' Saturday in San Diego.