The San Diego Padres are finally playing their best baseball at the perfect time. An eight-game winning streak has transformed a stressful September into one that could end with the Padres not only reaching the postseason, but potentially climbing the National League Wild Card standings.

There is one scenario they should desperately want to avoid.

A series against the Philadelphia Phillies.

If the season ended today, San Diego would own the third and final NL Wild Card spot. The Padres entered Tuesday one game behind the Phillies for the second Wild Card, meaning there is still plenty of time for the two teams to flip positions.

The Phillies have absolutely owned the Padres since Philadelphia eliminated them in the 2022 NLCS. Since the beginning of that series, Philadelphia is 23-7 against San Diego. The Phillies took that dominance to another level this season, sweeping all six meetings against the Padres.

A Wild Card Series in Philadelphia would bring back some awful memories for Padres fans. Bryce Harper, Kyle Schwarber and the Phillies crushed San Diego's World Series dreams four years ago, and much of Philadelphia's dangerous offensive core remains intact.

Harper, Schwarber, Trea Turner, Brandon Marsh, and former Friar Luis Arraez give Philadelphia a lineup capable of making life miserable for any pitching staff. The Phillies can also counter with a deep rotation that becomes particularly dangerous in a short series.

There is at least one major question surrounding that rotation. Jesús Luzardo was placed on the injured list Tuesday after initially receiving encouraging news from an MRI. Interim manager Don Mattingly hasn't ruled out Luzardo returning for a postseason start, but his availability is now uncertain. If Luzardo can't pitch in the Wild Card Series, it would unquestionably make Philadelphia a little less intimidating.

San Diego shouldn't count on that happening.

The good news is that there really isn't another potential Wild Card scenario the Padres should fear nearly as much. San Diego would welcome the opportunity to play essentially anyone at Petco Park. Home-field advantage becomes even more important in a three-game series, and the Padres have had more success against potential postseason opponents such as the Chicago Cubs, Atlanta Braves, and Arizona Diamondbacks than they've had against Philadelphia. Even facing one of those teams on the road wouldn't carry the same baggage as heading into Citizens Bank Park.

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The Cubs have been one of the National League's best teams, Atlanta has plenty of postseason experience, and nobody in San Diego should underestimate an Arizona team fighting alongside the Padres for a playoff spot. None would be an easy opponent.

But that's October. There aren't supposed to be easy opponents. But Philadelphia is different.

The Phillies haven't beaten San Diego occasionally. They've consistently controlled the matchup for four seasons, beginning with the 2022 NLCS and continuing through a six-game season sweep in 2026. Even hosting Philadelphia at Petco Park wouldn't necessarily be the ideal reward for climbing the standings.

That's why the Padres' final couple of weeks are about more than getting into the postseason. San Diego still needs to officially secure its invitation to October. Arizona remains close enough to make things uncomfortable, and the Padres can't assume their current eight-game winning streak has finished the job.

But the Padres are playing their best baseball of the season, and their postseason outlook looks dramatically better than it did even a couple of weeks ago.

Now it's about positioning and potentially avoiding the one team that has repeatedly been their kryptonite.

Get into October first. Then hope the bracket sends San Diego anywhere except into another postseason showdown with Philadelphia.