Padres Do The Unimaginable! Advance To NLCS With Upset Over Dodgers

What felt like what would have been a Best-of-5 series 124.5 miles back up to Los Angeles is no more with the unreal postseason that our San Diego Padres have played. Yet again this team has proved the experts wrong with another major upset and arguably the biggest upset this postseason has seen.

Petco Park and the Padres erupt after scoring five unanswered runs in the seventh inning. Credit to CBS Sports for this image.

As Freddie Freeman struck out against Josh Hader for the final out, I cried with a smile on my face. For the first time since 1998, the San Diego Padres have reached the National League Championship Series. A team that was poised to not beat the New York Mets or even sniff a win against the Los Angeles Dodgers yet the Padres are finally rewarded a home field advantage for the first time in this postseason.

So many emotions this team has brought and we are only halfway through the playoffs. Game 4 in the 2022 NLDS between the San Diego Padres and Los Angeles Dodgers put the cherry on top with our emotions. What felt like a soon to be trip back to Dodger Stadium vanished within moments as the Padres finally made Dave Roberts and his decision making on the Dodgers bullpen pay.

Trailing 3-0 due to a Freeman double and Smith sacrifice fly, the Padres were running out of time. Yet the bottom three of the order in mostly Profar/Kim, Grisham and Nola have come through again! With starter Tyler Anderson only throwing 86 pitches, he was pulled after five innings. Chris Martin went just one and next thing you know, Roberts turns to Kahnle who pitched the day before. Nola took the GOOSE egg off the board with an RBI single which brought in Profar who walked to get this magic started. Passing the baton over, Ha-Seong Kim finally came through with a clutch double that brought in Grisham who recorded a hit before Nola's at-bat. With runners on second and third and no outs, Juan Soto had himself a much-needed big hit. A line drive single that tied the game up suddenly and brought the Friar Faithful into a frenzy!

With two tough consecutive outs after in a Machado strikeout and Drury infield pop-up, Jake "The Rake" Cronenworth had Petco Park vibrating. With Roberts trying to think too much with analytics, he turned to lefty Alex Vesia to face the lefty Cronenworth. After some great takes, Cronenworth ripped a base hit to center field which brought in Kim and Soto who "stole" second. In the blink of an eye, it is 5-3 San Diego. Friar Faithful is going nuts. The "Beat L.A." chants were loud and clear. This team truly showed you do not give up until 27 outs are recorded. That seventh inning will never be forgotten by this team and fanbase.

Hader being the prime closer that we know for the past month came in with the heart of the Dodgers order in Betts, Turner and Freeman due up down two. How about striking out the side? Especially to get that last out on Freeman. Yeah, the Dodgers surely looked hot in this series, right Freddie? Have fun watching from your couch.

Now the Padres are rewarded home field to start their NLCS route against the surprisingly hot Philadelphia Phillies. Like we've talked about, the best team such as the Dodgers in the regular season means nothing. The hottest teams playing great baseball with no breaks can do damage. Respectfully, do not sleep on the Phillies as both teams were underdogs to get past the Wild Card.

However, it will be fun. A minimum four wins and the Padres are World Series bound for the first time since 1998. It is crazy to say this is real life but the front office and players and you fans have made this possible. Let's capture the moment San Diego! I can't wait to see you all this Tuesday and Wednesday. Don't lose your voices just yet with all the cheering. We have a series to win and a team to feed with encouragement.