The 2024 playoffs are off and running, and one National League Division Series is set to begin on Saturday.
After sweeping the Atlanta Braves with a 2-0 series win, the San Diego Padres will face California rival the Los Angeles Dodgers in a 5-game series.
The Dodgers had the best record in baseball during the regular season, so they have home-field advantage for games 1,2 and 5 if necessary.
Game 3 and game 4, if necessary, will be home games for the Padres, and they made a move to ensure that home-field advantage would stand.
According to B/R Walk-Off on ‘X,’ the Padres have placed restrictions on who can purchase National League Division Series tickets.
The Padres have restrictions placed on who can purchase NLDS tickets 👀 pic.twitter.com/lmhbRA2qrL
— B/R Walk-Off (@BRWalkoff) October 3, 2024
Both of these National League Division Series teams are from California, and they are within a 3-hour drive from each other’s stadiums.
These two teams have met recently in the postseason, so the Padres took extra precautions to ensure their home-field advantage stands for games 3 and 4.
They have restricted selling tickets to certain areas around them in an attempt to keep Dodgers fans out of their stadium.
It appears the Padres could be trying to play some mind games with the Dodgers by making this move, and it will leave many Dodgers fans upset.
After getting swept by the Dodgers in 2020, this series appears to have become a rivalry.
The Padres last made the National League Championship Series in 2022 when they lost 4-1 to the Philadelphia Phillies.
They will look to continue riding the long ball as they take on Shohei Ohtani and the Dodgers beginning this weekend.
NEXT: Fernando Tatis Jr. Reveals What Postseason Means To Him