If this weekend's Dodgers-Padres series at Dodger Stadium is an indicator, the National League West may not be decided until the final days of the season. Maybe it will take an extra game on the Monday after the regular-season finale. Los Angeles took a game-and-a-half lead Friday night with a 3-1 victory, as Greg Maddux and two relievers combined on a two-hit effort. The Padres rebounded with a convincing 11-2 win Saturday, with Mike Cameron, Todd Walker and Adrian Gonzalez stroking two-run homers in an eight-run third inning. Sunday featured a nail-biter, a 2-1 Padres victory that bumped the Dodgers from the top spot. The difference was an RBI single by Terrmel Sledge in the ninth, as San Diego claimed its eighth win over Los Angeles in their last nine meetings. Their season series, which San Diego leads 13-4, concludes on Monday night with Jake Peavy facing Brad Penny. The San Diego series is the start of a 10-game homestand for the Dodgers, with Pittsburgh and Arizona coming to Chavez Ravine this week. The Padres also host the Pirates and Diamondbacks in reverse order over the next seven days. In the final week of the season, both NL West contenders play their last six games on the road. Here their opponents differ, as the Padres travel to St. Louis and Arizona and the Dodgers visit Colorado and San Francisco. San Diego's six games with the Diamondbacks present a challenge, as the Padres are 5-7 against them. The Dodgers must close against their top rival, the Giants, who still could be playing for a wild-card berth. The Dodgers have won 10 of 16 from the Giants this season. It's possible the loser in the NL West race will be the wild-card team, but that's not a certainty with Philadelphia having won five of its last six games and now trailing the Dodgers by a single game in the wild-card chase. So, who will it be in the NL West? The Dodgers, who are a much more productive team offensively than their rival. Or the Padres, who have a 3.92 team ERA that is the best in the league. Meanwhile, the Giants, who trail the first-place Padres by four games, are hoping their final three games of the season against the Dodgers could still be their ticket to the NL West crown.