The wait for the postseason is finally over for the Arizona Diamondbacks.

After a six-year absence from October baseball, the Diamondbacks clinched a spot in the playoffs following losses by the St. Louis Cardinals and Milwaukee Brewers. They punctuated the day with a 3-2 win over the Florida Marlins after a walk-off single from slugger J.D. Martinez.

The team enjoyed a raucous, champagne-soaked celebration in the locker room after the game and reflected on the hard work that brought them to this point.

All-Star first baseman Paul Goldschmidt told KJZZ Radio, “We’ve been working really hard. When you go into the offseason, your goal is to find a way to get in the playoffs. So, you know, we’re one step closer. We want to win the World Series. We want to keep going. But we’ll definitely just enjoy it now.”

Arizona earned the National League’s top wild-card spot and will play the second wild-card winner in a one-game playoff on Oct. 4. With just a few days left in the season, that looks likely to be division rival Colorado, though St. Louis and Milwaukee remain in contention.

The winner of the Wild Card round will face the Los Angeles Dodgers in the National League Division Series beginning Oct. 6.

Arizona’s return to the postseason comes in Torey Lovullo’s first season as manager of the Diamondbacks. Lovullo served as bench coach for the Boston Red Sox from 2012-2016, so he’s no stranger to postseason success and he’ll now look to guide Arizona to a deep playoff run. 

As the architect of a remarkable turnaround from last year’s 69-93 campaign, Lovullo knows that the toughest test is still ahead. He spoke this week about the challenge of balancing decisions ahead of – and during – the postseason.

“I have fear about what’s right and what’s wrong,” he told KMVP-FM. “I’m not afraid to admit that I have some overall anxiety. But I know that I follow the process, I follow the strategy. Being proactive as possible — and we are here — is going to help me gear up and get ready.”

Clinching a wild-card spot with a week remaining in the season gives the team a chance to rest a few players and line up their playoff rotation. Ace Zack Greinke is likely to start the wild-card after some rotation shuffling by Lovullo.

The National League wild-card game is set for Wednesday, Oct. 4, at Chase Field. The game will air on TBS.