By earning a split at Wrigley Field the Los Angeles Dodgers now hold home-field advantage for the remainder of the National League Championship Series. Beginning Tuesday, Dodger Stadium plays host to three NLCS games in three days.
That should bode well for the Dodgers, who went 53-28 at home during the regular season, but the Cubs were 12 games over .500 on the road, and the merit of home-field advantage during the playoffs remains a contested point.
That’s the view Rich Hill has heading into his Game 3 start. “Am I believer in home-field advantage? I want to say no,” Hill explained prior to Monday’s workout at Dodger Stadium.
“Just because of what we did in Washington and the way we handled ourselves [Sunday] night in Chicago. So I want to say home-field advantage is kind of more of a comfort level when you’re out playing in Dodger Stadium because you’re used to the confines and the surroundings.”
In three home starts with the Dodgers this season, Hill went 2-1 with a 0.53 ERA and 0.88 WHIP. His postseason outings to this point have both come at Nationals Park. Hill was largely average in the two starts, though one did come on short rest, which was a first in the veteran’s career.
The 36-year-old allowed five runs on nine hits in seven innings, but did have 13 strikeouts. The Dodgers went 1-1 in those games, with their victory coming in winner-take-all Game 5.
“When I look back at that,” Hill said of his NL Division Series pitching line, “it’s just, again, it all goes into you’ve got to look at the situation. You’ve got to look at where we were at in those games and, you know, for me looking back is putting us in a position to succeed and win those games.
“I go out there and give everything that I have, that’s it. That’s the bottom line. Your effort is everything. Your ability to go out there and stay in the moment and execute pitch to pitch and do the best that you can, that’s it.”
