In the midst of a very strong season, San Diego Padres star Manny Machado made a little Padres history. His two-run home run in the sixth inning of Tuesday's game against the Seattle Mariners gave Machado 164 homers in a San Diego uniform, breaking the franchise record previously held by Nate Colbert.

The two-run shot off of Mariners starter George Kirby came at a critical time in the game, extending the San Diego lead to three runs in the sixth inning of an important game. The Padres were hanging onto the top Wild Card spot entering Tuesday's slate, just a half game ahead of the division rival Arizona Diamondbacks. San Diego is also trying to make a late push for the NL West crown, although they have an uphill battle in front of them as they try to climb out of a 5.5 game hole and catch the Los Angeles Dodgers.

Machado entered Tuesday with 25 home runs and 90 RBIs on a very respectable .275/.328/.467 slash line with an OPS+ of 121.

Padres lead crowded NL Wild Card race

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The NL Wild Card race is very crowded with just under three weeks left in the regular season. Teams around the league are battling to snag one of the three Wild Card spots and improve their seeding in the first round of the playoffs.

The Padres and Diamondbacks currently have an upper-hand on the rest of the pack, as they entered Tuesday's slate with a slight lead for the top two Wild Card spots. The two NL West rivals have a crucial three-game series against each other coming up on the final weekend of the regular season in Phoenix.

A New York Mets loss to the Toronto Blue Jays coupled with an Atlanta Braves win over the Washington Nationals early on Tuesday evening means that the Mets and Braves are now tied for the third and final NL Wild Card spot. Despite the loss, the Mets have been surging lately, winning eight of their last 10 games, and will take on the Braves in a three-game series from Sept. 24-26. The Mets are dealing with a very difficult closing schedule, with seven games against the NL East-leading Phillies still remaining on the schedule.

The Chicago Cubs are still alive in the race as well, although they will need a major hot streak to get back into the race. They're still 4.5 games back of the Mets and Braves, but have won two in a row entering Tuesday and still have a chance to make a late push.