Welcome to Cubs Playoff Watch, your daily look at the Chicago Cubs as they continue to push toward their first division title since the 2008 season.

Cubs’ Magic Number: 24

The Chicago Cubs finished off their sweep of the San Diego Padres on Wednesday afternoon, which leaves them with an 81-45 record and a staggering 36 games over .500 on the season.

In fact, that 36 games above .500 mark is the highest that the team has achieved since the 1945 season, which incidentally is the last time that the Cubs made it to the World Series.

The win came courtesy of yet another strong pitching performance by Kyle Hendricks, who pitched six innings of two-run ball in the victory. The Cubs also got a big day at the plate from Kris Bryant, who had two hits and two runs in the game, and Willson Contreras, who blasted his eighth home run of the season to help pace the Chicago effort.

Unfortunately for the Cubs, they didn’t get any help from the New York Mets on Wednesday. Thanks to a strong pitching performance from Carlos Martinez and home runs from Randall Grichuk, Matt Carpenter, and Stephen Piscotty, the St. Louis Cardinals picked up an 8-1 win over the Mets, and they managed to keep pace with the Cubs.

Even with the win, the Cardinals still trail the Cubs by 13 and a half games, with just 35 games left to play in the regular season.

Magic Number to Clinch Home Field: 29

For the third consecutive day, the Cubs have gotten some help from the Baltimore Orioles, as the Washington Nationals lost 10-8 as the series shifted to the nation’s capital.

Starting pitcher Tanner Roark got roughed up big time for the Nationals on Wednesday, giving up five runs and seven hits in five innings of work.

With the loss, the Nationals now trail the Cubs by eight games for the best record in the National League, with the Nats having just 36 games remaining on their schedule.

What’s Next:

The Cubs will have a Thursday off to soak up the sun in SoCal before they begin a series with the red-hot Los Angeles Dodgers on Friday night. The Dodgers will have Bud Norris take the mound in the series opener, with Mike Montgomery making his second start as a member of the Cubs.

The Cardinals will play the series finale of their three-game set against the Mets on Thursday night at Busch Stadium, with Adam Wainwright toeing the slab against Seth Lugo.

Finally, the Nationals will look to salvage one game of their series with the Orioles, and they’ll be sending their best pitcher to the mound as Max Scherzer will look to turn things around for the suddenly scuffling squad.