Dodgers News: LA Clinches Home-Field Advantage Throughout Postseason

The Dodgers claim the No. 1 seed again.

Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images

The Los Angeles Dodgers have officially clinched home-field advantage in the National League for the 2024 MLB playoffs. The Philadelphia Phillies were the only team remaining with the chance to take home-field advantage over the Dodgers, but the Phillies lost to the Washington Nationals Saturday, sealing home-field for the Dodgers.

The Dodgers had already clinched a first-round bye, meaning they will get to skip the wildcard round and begin postseason play during the NL Division Series, which begins Saturday, Oct. 5. The Phillies do have a first-round bye as well, but will not finish as the No. 1 overall seed.

Since the Dodgers earned home-field advantage, they will get to have the majority of home games in any postseason series they play this season. Dodger Stadium will get to host the Dodgers' first playoff game of the year, and Shohei Ohtani's first career MLB playoff game.

The Dodgers still have two more games against the Colorado Rockies before the regular season comes to a close, but the outcome of those games matters little since the Dodgers have clinched the top spot in the NL. They clinched the No. 1 seed two days after clinching the NL West division when they defeated the San Diego Padres on Thursday. The Padres had a chance to overtake them for the division, particularly after they won the first game of the series, but the Dodgers held strong to secure the division.

Los Angeles has an overall record of 96-64 heading into their final two games of the season. This will be the first time since 2018 (outside of the COVID-19 pandemic shortened 2020 season) that the Dodgers missed out on 100 total wins. This won't matter though, if the Dodgers do go on to win the World Series.

This marks the fifth time since Dave Roberts became manager of the Dodgers that the team has finished as the No. 1 seed. The Dodgers previously earned the No. 1 seed under Roberts in 2017, 2019, 2020, and 2022. The Dodgers won the World Series in 2020.

The Dodgers will look ahead to the NLDS, where they will face the winner of the Padres and the No. 5 seed, which will be either the Atlanta Braves, New York Mets, or Arizona Diamondbacks. The Dodgers have been eliminated during the NLDS over the last two seasons, by the Padres in 2022 and Diamondbacks in 2023, and will try to get past the first round this October.