*** UPDATE: October 2, 2015 at 1:30 pm PT ***

Although the who and the when for one-half of the 2015 National League Division Series has already been determined, the where has not. The who are the Los Angeles Dodgers and the New York Mets, both of whom clinched their respective divisions this past week. The when is Friday, October 9. But with both teams currently holding identical 89-70 records with three games remaining in the regular season, the where – or home field advantage for the NLDS – is still up for grabs.

A.J. Ellis jumps into the arms of Clayton Kershaw as the Dodgers clinch their third consecutive NL West title against the San Francisco Giants at AT&T Park. (Photo credit – Jon SooHoo)

Heading into Friday night’s action the Mets hold a slight advantage because they won four of the seven games played against the Dodgers this season, taking two of three at Dodger Stadium in early July and splitting the four games played at Citi Field later that same month. As such, should the two teams end the season still tied, the Mets will have home field advantage in the Division Series.

While there are those who say that home field advantage is no big deal, from a fans perspective and most certainly from ownership’s perspective it is a huge deal.

How so, you ask?

Because the team holding home field advantage is guaranteed that there will be a minimum of two games played at their own ballpark regardless of the outcome of those first two NLDS games, whereas the visiting team must win at least one of those first two game in order to assure themselves two games at their own ballpark in the best-of-five series. For fans of the non-HFA team this means an additional game at their team’s own ballpark and for owners of that team it means millions of dollars in revenue from concessions and merchandise sales. And should the series go the full five games, the team with home field advantage gets the fifth and deciding game back at their own ballpark, which is the absolute best case scenario for that team’s coffers.

But is home field advantage all that big of a deal for the players themselves?

“I don’t buy into any of that [home field advantage] stuff,” said Dodgers first baseman Adrian Gonzalez when asked about it by ESPNLA’s Mark Saxon. “You play the games and you win some, you lose some. You can’t say, ‘Oh, we won because of this.'”

But what about playing in front of a loud and often hostile out-of-town crowd? Does that affect them more than playing in front of their own hometown crowd?

“Heck no. We don’t pay attention to the crowds,” Gonzalez said. “We like it when our crowds cheer for us at home, but it isn’t going to affect us one way or another.”

While the Dodgers open their final series of the regular season against the San Diego Padres tonight at Dodger Stadium, the Met will be hosting the Washington Nationals at Citi Field in New York. And although the Padres will finish no better than fourth place in the NL West and the Nationals no better than second place in the NL East, Dodgers fans are all well aware that a team with absolutely nothing to lose is extremely dangerous, as evidenced by the recent three-game series sweep over the first place Dodgers by the last place Colorado Rockies this past weekend in Denver.

At the same time, the Washington Nationals – who were predicted by most baseball experts to run away with the NL East – have been under heavy media scrutiny for the recent Bryce Harper/Jonathan Papelbon scuffle in their own dugout – an incident that left the short-tempered Papelbon suspended by the team for the remainder of the season. Additionally, there have been widespread rumors that when the Nats’ season ends on Sunday afternoon, so too will Matt Williams’ short career as the team’s manager. As such, you can bet that Williams will be doing all he can to finish their disastrous season in the win column if for no other reason than to audition for a managerial job elsewhere; which could make his team a thorn in the side for the Mets.

Teammates break up a dugout scuffle between Nationals outfielder Bryce Harper and closer Jonathan Papelbon – yet another example of the many things that have gone wrong for the beleaguered team this season. (Photo credit – Greg Fiume)

The bottom line is that regardless of how it is done, the Dodgers must finish the regular season at least one game ahead of the Mets in the final standing to secure home field advantage and a Friday, October 9 NLDS opener at Dodger Stadium. If they do not, Dodger fans will not see their team at Dodger Stadium until Monday, October 12 with their beloved team up by two games, down by two game or the series tied at one game apiece.

*** UPDATE: October 2, 2015 at 1:30 pm PT ***

Friday night’s Mets / Nationals game has been postponed due to rain. The teams are scheduled to play a split doubleheader on Saturday, October 3 at 1:10 pm and 7:10 pm ET respectively.