Over the past 51 games, only the Cleveland Guardians — losers of 10 in a row — have an OPS lower than the San Diego Padres’ .645 mark. Only two teams have hit fewer homers (39) Only three offenses have a worse wRC+ (84).

The thing about Cleveland, Pittsburgh and Kansas City: They aren’t in playoff position and probably never were going to be (The Royals might if Bobby Witt Jr. gets back to an MVP level).

The Padres?

They are five games under .500 over their last 51 games, but they currently in possession of the NL’s final wild-card spot, and they hope to be turning a corner.

Sunday’s win marked the first time they’d scored at least four runs in back-to-back games since June 24-25.

A baby step, to be sure, but Fernando Tatis Jr. was the driving force on Sunday for the first time hitting a three-run homer on June 21, Luis Arraez is collecting hits in bunches again and the team welcomes back Yu Darvish to the rotation on Monday.

Maybe it’s the start of a second wind.

“I loved, loved, loved our at-bats,” Padres manager Mike Shildt said Sunday night. “Tough at-bats throughout. Just relentless. … We do that, we’re going to go on a tear for a while.”

1. Chicago Cubs (54-36, Last week, 3)

Too late? Michael Busch hit three home runs on Friday, is sitting on 18 on the season and a .939 OPS, but the NL roster does not at the moment have room for him in the All-Star Game.

2. Detroit Tigers (57-34, LW, 1)

Zack McKinstry’s numbers won’t wow anyone—six homers, 10 steals and an .815 OPS—but he’s doing it while seeing time at third base, second, short, left field and right field.

3. Houston Astros

(55-35, LW. 6)

Drumming up another postseason push: After a sweep in L.A., a fifth straight AL West title for the Astros seems inevitable.

4. Los Angeles Dodgers (56-35, LW, 2)

Dodgers manager Dave Roberts says the sign-stealing drama with the Astros is behind them, but a three-game sweep in LA at the hands of Houston can’t feel good.

5. Philadelphia Phillies (53-47, LW, 8)

Better with age: Perhaps the best pitcher who has yet to win a Cy Young, a 35-year-old Zack Wheeler was one pitch—a solo homer from Austin Hays—shy of completing a perfect game for his ninth win of the season.

6. Toronto Blue Jays (52-38, LW, 14)

An eight-game winning streak and a perfect homestand, the second of at least seven games in franchise history, has carried the Blue Jays to top of the AL East.

7. New York Yankees (49-41, LW, 4)

Losing their grip on the division is the least of the Yankees’ concerns. Clark Schmidt likely needs Tommy John surgery.

8. Tampa Bay Rays (49-41, LW, 5)

Strikes and gutters: Brandon Lowe was selected to his second all-star roster on Sunday, but he exited in the third inning with soreness in his left side, washing away his shot at setting a franchise record with a 21-game hitting streak.

9. Milwaukee Brewers (50-40, LW, 7)

Welcome back: Brandon Woodruff struck out eight over six innings of one-run ball to win his first post-shoulder-surgery start since 2023.

10. New York Mets (52-39, LW. 10)

Huh? Juan Soto and his 21 homers and a .904 OPS for a team in New York did not get an invite to the All-Star Game. If this holds, it will the first time he has missed the game since nobody went to an All-Star Game in 2020.

11. Seattle Mariners (48-42, LW, 15)

The second coming? In Mariners’ history, only Cal Raleigh and Ken Griffey Jr. have hit 35 homers before the all-star break.

12. San Diego Padres (48-41, LW, 13)

Two to 2,000: Manny Machado went 0 for 4 with two strikeouts on his 33rd birthday, leaving him at 1,999 hits heading into the final week before the all-star break.

The rest

13. St. Louis Cardinals (48-43, LW: 9)

14. Cincinnati Reds (46-44, LW: 11)

15. San Francisco Giants (49-42, LW: 12)

16. Boston Red Sox (46-45, LW: 17)

17. Texas Rangers (44-46, LW: 16)

18. Arizona Diamondbacks (44-46, LW: 18)

19. Minnesota Twins (43-47, LW: 19)

20. Atlanta Braves (39-50, LW: 20)

21. Kansas City Royals (43-48, LW: 23)

22. Los Angeles Angels (43-46, LW: 22)

23. Pittsburgh Pirates (38-53, LW: 24)

24. Cleveland Guardians (40-48, LW: 21)

25. Miami Marlins (40-48, LW: 25)

26. Baltimore Orioles (40-49, LW: 26)

27. Washington Nationals (37-53, LW: 27)

28. Athletics (37-55, LW: 29)

29. Chicago White Sox (30-60, LW: 28)

30. Colorado Rockies (21-69, LW: 30)