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The Brewers currently hold a comfortable 8 1/2-game cushion over the Cardinals in the National League Central, but their margin for home-field advantage in the first round is only 2 1/2. Maintaining that lead is especially crucial for the Brew Crew. Since Wild Card winners don't get home-field advantage regardless of their standing, locking up the second-best record among NL division leaders mean college football s securing home-field advantage against the Braves in the five-game Division Series -- rather than not having it against a Phillies team that sports baseball's best record. Considering Milwaukee owns the best home record in the Majors and is the only one among those on pace to make the playoffs that's below .500 on the road, playing postseason home games appears to be of the utmost importance. The college football Brewers -- three wins and two losses better than the NL West-leading D-backs -- are an amazing 50-19 at Miller Park and a subpar 35-40 everywhere else. At the plate, they're hitting .280 with 87 homers at home and .247 with 71 homers on the road. On the mound, their splits are similarly drastic, as their 3.33 home ERA is more than a half-run better than their road mark. AL at opposing ballparksAL college football NYBOSDETTEXYankees 46-264-51-32-1Red Sox6-042-293-13-4Tigers1-20-242-292-1Rangers1-52-12-444-28The D-backs are 42-26 at home (where they hit slightly better) and 40-35 on the road (where they pitch slightly better), and they'd love nothing more than to make up ground in order to avoid facing the Phillies juggernaut in the first round. So there's an NL race worth watching down the stretch. The Amer college football ican League has a similar one among the potential third and fourth seeds. That race currently pits the Tigers and Rangers; two teams separated by a half-game for the AL's third-best record. Both teams would greatly benefit from playing a higher number of home games in a short playoff series. Those two should still worry about getting in the playoffs at this point (the Tigers hold a nine-game lead college football over the White Sox in the AL Central, while the Rangers' lead over the Angels is 2 1/2 games in the AL West). But even if they clear that hurdle, they'll still be playing for the right to host the Division Series -- be it against the Red Sox or Yankees. Think it's just logistics? Consider that 11 of the 16 Division Series winners over the past four years have had home-field advantage. Also, consid college football er what the Tigers and Rangers could potentially gain from home-field advantage. NL at opposing ballparksNLPHIATLMILARIPhillies48-223-30-01-2Braves 3-5 44-28 1-3 0-2Brewers2-10-450-192-2D-backs1-20-32-142-26The Tigers are 42-29 at pitcher-friendly Comerica Park and 39-33 on the road. In the Motor City, they hit better (.285 with 77 homers versus .265 with 65 homers) and they pitch slightly bet college football ter at home. Perhaps most important, ace Justin Verlander is 57-23 with a 3.21 ERA in 97 career starts at Comerica Park, and 48-34 with a 3.92 ERA in 99 career starts elsewhere.The Rangers' biggest advantage is their offense, and it flourishes at the Ballpark in Arlington. Texas is 44-28 at its hitter-friendly park and 37-35 on the road. The Rangers pitch much better outside their 4.48 home ERA i college football s more than a run per game above their 3.29 road ERA -- but their hitters warm up to the Texas heat. At home, they've hit .289 with 106 homers and 402 RBIs. On the road, they've hit .266 with 69 homers and 296 RBIs. Sure, teams are almost always better at home than on the road. But for the two likely Central and West champions, home-field advantage is almost dire. Here's how the home-road splits l college football ook for the rest of the playoff probables. Remember, the battle between the Yankees and Red Sox for the AL East is also one with home-field advantage at stake -- the Wild Card winner is denied home-field advantage throughout the postseason. YankeesRecord: 46-27 at home; 41-27 on roadHitting: .274 BA, 115 HR, 418 RBIs at home; .261 BA, 85 HR, 335 RBIs on roadPitching: 3.86 ERA, 1.28 WHIP at home; 3 college football .52 ERA, 1.31 WHIP on roadRed SoxRecord: 42-29 at home; 43-28 on roadHitting: .295 BA, 80 HR, 379 RBIs at home; .266 BA, 98 HR, 365 RBI on roadPitching: 4.37 ERA, 1.37 WHIP at home; 3.57 ERA, 1.18 WHIP on roadPhilliesRecord: 49-22 at home; 42-26 on roadHitting: .260 BA, 72 HR, 3332 RBIs at home; .247 BA, 64 HR, 286 RBI on roadPitching: 2.75 ERA, 1.08 WHIP at home; 3.38 ERA, 1.264 WHIP on roadBrave college football sRecord: 44-28 at home; 38-32 on roadHitting: .259 BA, 82 HR, 279 RBIs at home; .232 BA, 74 HR, 264 RBI on roadPitching: 2.99 ERA, 1.157 WHIP at home; 3.85 ERA, 1.33 on road college football
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