Reasons to believe ... and reasons to be wary for SD this postseason

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The Padres are headed to the postseason, and they picked an awfully dramatic way to clinch on Tuesday: A triple play at Dodger Stadium with Shohei Ohtani looming on deck.

If that -- and the rest of this Padres season -- is any indication, get ready for some serious October drama.

Here are three reasons to be optimistic for a deep postseason run in San Diego … and three reasons for concern:

Reasons for optimism

1. The pitching depth: It starts in the rotation, where the Padres have five legitimate options for playoff starts. Martín Pérez is likely headed to a long-man role. But with Michael King, Dylan Cease, Joe Musgrove and Yu Darvish, the Padres won’t need to push their starters on short rest or use bullpen games. And speaking of that bullpen, it shortens games in a major way. When a starter has handed the bullpen a lead, the Padres have lost only once since early June.

2. The offensive balance: “There are,” Manny Machado said recently, “just so many different ways we can win.” That’s especially true on offense, where the Padres do everything well. They put the ball in play. They hit for average. They run the bases. If there was one knock, it was their lack of power. But since Fernando Tatis Jr.’s return -- and Machado’s surge as he’s recovered from elbow surgery -- they now have two elite power threats in the lineup, which might be the deepest in baseball.

3. The vibes: No, I can’t quantify this. Yes, it’s absolutely a thing. And if you’ve watched these Padres, you know it might be the thing. Clearly, the Padres have struck gold with their chemistry this year. The biggest way I’ve seen it pay dividends is: When things go awry, this team doesn’t seem to mind. Collectively, they punch back. If that’s not a useful trait for postseason baseball, I don’t know what is.

Reasons for concern

1. The closer spot: For five months, this was one of the team's biggest strengths. Robert Suarez had three blown saves coming into September. He’s now blown three in seven outings. The Padres insist Suarez’s stuff is still there -- and the metrics show no noticeable drop-off. But Suarez’s command has wavered. The Padres have indicated a willingness to play matchups with Suarez, Jason Adam and Tanner Scott at the back end. But they’ve yet to truly do so.

2. Shortstop: Xander Bogaerts had gotten so comfortable at second base that manager Mike Shildt called him “Gold Glove-caliber” there. I wouldn’t go that far. But he was legitimately good. Now that Bogaerts is back at shortstop though, he’s struggled. In the meantime, Ha-Seong Kim’s continued absence due to right shoulder inflammation forces Donovan Solano into the starting lineup, leaving the Padres with only one pinch-hit weapon on their bench in David Peralta. It also means that Jake Cronenworth (.522 OPS vs. LHP) must start against left-handers. Kim is currently in Arizona rehabbing his shoulder injury. It’s unclear whether he’ll return.

3. The path: This has nothing to do with the Padres themselves. But if they can’t win the division, their path to a World Series is brutal. First, they’d have to face whichever team finishes the Wild Card race the hottest. If they advance, they could conceivably face the teams with the three best records in baseball. Of course, no team in baseball has a better record than the Padres’ 41-18 mark since the All-Star break. I’m sure they’d welcome the challenge.