Cubs' Wrigley Field advantage makes their NL Wild Card positioning impossible to ignore

After their victory over the Atlanta Braves on Wednesday, taking two of three against the NL East leaders this season, the Chicago Cubs enter Thursday's off day with a half-game lead over the Philadelphia Phillies in the National League Wild Card race.

The Phillies start a four-game series against the New York Mets on Thursday night, while the Cubs start a weekend series against the Cincinnati Reds on Friday. Looking at the remaining schedule of each team, it would seem that the Cubs are on the inside track toward landing the top wild-card spot in the National League.

Rounding out the playoffs in the National League is the San Diego Padres. The Padres have 3.5-game lead over the Arizona Diamondbacks for the final spot in the playoffs.

The most likely scenario has the Cubs playing the Phillies to open the playoffs, and the next week will determine if that series is at Wrigley Field or Citizen's Bank Park. The Cubs need that series to be at Wrigley Field, not just because of the trap that is playing three consecutive games on the road in Philadelphia, but because of the clear advantage playing at home has been for the Cubs this season.

Cubs' record at Wrigley Field shows exactly why top NL Wild Card spot matters so much

In the 16 games that the Cubs have played at Wrigley Field this season against the Braves, Los Angeles Dodgers, Philadelphia Phillies, San Diego Padres, and Arizona Diamondbacks, they have only lost once. Beyond building a roster around the elite defense the team has, Jed Hoyer and Co. have built a roster equipped to have success at Wrigley Field.

As a whole, the Cubs are 12 games above .500 at Wrigley Field this season. On the road, they enter Friday's game against the Reds with a record of 40-35. For reference, the Phillies have much closer splits between Citizen's Bank Park and road games this season. They are 41-34 this season at home, and 43-34 on the road.

Along those lines, it's worth noting what has propped the Phillies up over the last two months was going 21-7 in August. Entering their series against the Mets this weekend, Philadelphia is 6-8 in September.

All this to the Phillies may not be that daunting of a playoff opponent as they once seemed, especially if the Cubs are hosting those games at Wrigley Field.

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