NL Wild Card race somehow gets even tighter

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PHOENIX -- If the series opener Friday night is any indication, a D-backs-Padres postseason matchup would be must-see TV. Of course, the Padres’ 5-3 victory hurt Arizona's chances of making the postseason.

With two games left to play, the D-backs are in a virtual three-way tie with the Mets and Braves for the National League's No. 2 Wild Card spot. Arizona’s margin for error is shrinking.

The Padres threatened to make the game a laugher in the first inning, when they sent nine batters to the plate against Merrill Kelly and scored four runs.

But the D-backs lead baseball in runs scored for a reason, and they quickly answered back with two of their own in the first, including a leadoff homer by Corbin Carroll.

The D-backs threatened plenty of times after that but were able to break through for only one more run when Eugenio Suárez snuck a grounder under third baseman Manny Machado's glove for an RBI single in the sixth.

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