The Los Angeles Dodgers returned home on Monday for the start of a pivotal three-game series with the Colorado Rockies that could very well determine the winner of the National League West race when it’s all said and done.
With a half-game separating the two teams and less than two weeks remaining in the regular season, the matchup presents a postseason feel.
The Dodgers took care of business in the opening bout, defeating the Rockies by a final score of 8-2 and reclaiming sole possession of first place in the NL West.
The win puts Los Angeles in a favorable position, as the club now has the luxury of sending ace Clayton Kershaw to the mound on Tuesday with an opportunity to clinch a series victory.
Doing so would give the Dodgers an edge, percentage-wise, of capturing their sixth consecutive NL West title. Here’s a look at the rest of the series outcomes and how each one could shape out the respective postseason fates of both clubs, via Dan Szymborski of FanGraphs:
It is almost impossible to overstate just how important the #Rockies/#Dodgers series is to the eventual NL West result and the teams' playoff fates. pic.twitter.com/hKcM9sCho8
— Dan Szymborski (@DSzymborski) September 18, 2018
The third-place Arizona Diamondbacks, who entered the month of September tops in the NL West, have since dropped 13 of their last 17 games and face a near impossible task of not only winning the division, but making the playoffs in general.
Regardless of the outcome of the Dodgers and Rockies series, the Diamondbacks were given a less than three percent chance of advancing to the postseason.
Statistically speaking, the club’s best chance of sneaking in would hinge on either Los Angeles or Colorado being swept.
