Friday was another footnote in the race for the third wild card.

The Diamondbacks lost again to the Padres, officially eliminating them from playoff contention. They join the Giants as the latest and final National League West team to be eliminated from a chance at the pennant.

The fact the Diamondbacks were even in the race to begin with was impressive. Entering September, the club was 68-71 and six and half games behind the Mets for the third spot. They were 51-59 and 10 games out entering August.

Failing to make the playoffs never leaves a good taste in anyone’s mouth, but after selling Eugenio Suárez, Josh Naylor, and Merrill Kelly at the deadline, the fact the club came so close speaks volume to their effort level down the stretch.

That leaves the final spot to two final teams: the Reds and Mets. New York lost last night to the Marlins 6-2, falling back into a tie with Cincinnati at 82-78 after their 3-1 win over the Brewers. That leaves the Reds in control of their destiny, as they hold the tiebreaker over the Mets.

The Mets have their hands full with the Marlins over Saturday and Sunday, but it won’t be a cake walk for the Reds. The Brewers still need to win one more game (or have the Phillies lose to the Twins) to get the best record in the majors, plus aren’t going to shorten their pitching with a week off after Sunday’s regular season finale.

Here are the scenarios for the Mets to make the playoffs:

If the Mets go 1-1, the Reds must go 0-2.

If the Mets go 2-0, the Reds must go 1-1 or 0-2.

Or in other terms — the Mets win at least one game, and the Reds must lose at least one game for New York to play in October.

NEW YORK METS (82-78)

The Mets’ rotation is in full desperation mode right now. They still haven’t laid out a Sunday starter, with guys like David Peterson and Sean Manaea as potential options.

Here are the final matchups for Saturday and Sunday:

Mets at Marlins – Clay Holmes vs. Eury Pérez

Mets at Marlins – TBD vs. Edward Cabrera

CINCINNATI REDS (82-78)

As previously mentioned, the Reds hold the tiebreaker over the Mets. So if the season ended today, they’d be heading to Los Angeles for a three-game wild-card series.

Cincinnati hasn’t taken the spot from the Mets over the last couple weeks, and lost two series to the Pirates and Athletics during this time. Still, they’ve hung around, and with Friday’s win over the Brewers, are now in control of their own destiny.

Luckily for the Mets, the Reds have to go through two tough customers. Jacob Misiorowski will go for four to five innings Saturday, then ace Freddy Peralta will pitch Sunday. There’s still a slim chance for the Mets.

Here are the matchups below:

Reds at Brewers – Andrew Abbott vs. Robert Gasser

Reds at Brewers – Brady Singer vs. Freddy Peralta