Washington Nationals Host Game 1 of Playoffs 2016: Schedule, Tickets, Predictions

WASHINGTON, DC — The Washington Nationals will host the Los Angeles Dodgers in the playoffs starting Friday after winning the National League East division. After winning the division Sept. 24, the Nats take a 95-67 record into the playoffs. It's the third time in five years that Washington has made it into the postseason, but has yet to advance to the World Series.

The Nats last faced the Dodgers in July, and the Dodgers went 5-1 against Washington this season. The Dodgers have not advanced to the National League championship series since 2013, while the Washington Nationals are trying to avoid their third loss in the NLDS over the last five seasons.

Home-field advantage appears to be a boon for the Nats; but in the divisional round, it does not help as much as one might expect, a Capital News Service analysis found.

Over the last five years, home teams have won 53 percent of all regular season games played. But in the divisional round, teams with home-field advantage have won just one in three series over the last five years.

In the two decades since the establishment of the the divisional round, home-field advantage hasn't made much of a difference. Since 1995, the home team has won exactly half of all divisional round series, and only twice (1995 and 2009) have all four teams with home-field advantage advanced.

During series that require all five games to be played, the team with home-field advantage is guaranteed to host the decisive fifth game. Of all 26 series that needed five games, the team without home-field advantage in the series-deciding game has won 17 times (65 percent).

»What are your predictions for the Nationals-Dodgers game? Tell us in the comments!

First pitch in the Nationals-Dodgers matchup will be at 5:38 p.m. ET on Friday, Oct. 7, at Nationals Park. The game will be broadcast on Fox Sports 1 television and ESPN radio. Subscribers to MLB.TV can watch a live stream online; some TV broadcasts will be blacked out in local markets. The website Cut Cable Today offers links to other options for ways to see the games.

Game 2 in the series will start at 4 p.m. Saturday before the teams head to LA for games 3 and 4 on Oct. 10 and 11. Washington will host the fifth and final game in the series on Oct. 13.

Purchase playoffs tickets via the Nationals website.

— Includes reporting from Ben Harris and Jake Eisenberg, Capital News Service

Photo from Washington Nationals game from Patch archives; graphics from Capital News Service