Philadelphia Phillies Viewing Split as Positive Heading Into Game 3

The Philadelphia Phillies will have to regroup after blowing a four run lead and losing Game 2 against the Atlanta Braves. They're viewing the split on the road as a positive as they head home for Game 3 of the NLDS.

The Philadelphia Phillies could be reeling after blowing their four run lead against the Atlanta Braves on their way to losing Game 2 of the NLDS.

If they are, they certainly aren't letting it be known.

The reality is, no matter how difficult that loss is to handle, the Phillies are heading back home with the series tied 1-1.

They have home field advantage with an opportunity to close out the NLDS in front of their fans in Philadelphia.

That's at least how manager Rob Thomson is looking at things heading into Game 3.

"We've got home-field advantage now, and really, that's what you're looking for after these two games," he said.

The loss is certainly difficult to recover from, knowing that teams up 2-0 in a best-of-five series are 14-2.

Bryce Harper reiterated that sentiment when viewing things in a larger context.

"You absolutely want to come in and go 2-0, but we did our job, we went 1-1 and we're going back home to play two in front of our home crowd and I think we're all looking forward to that," the superstar said after the loss.

The Phillies still have plenty of advantages in their favor.

Philadelphia will throw their ace Aaron Nola on Wednesday while the Braves are going with their third starter or an opener that will put more stress on their bullpen.

After having an up and down year, Nola has played some of his best baseball over his last three starts.

He has an ERA of 1.41 with 19 strikeouts over 19 2/3 innings pitched. That includes a great outing against Atlanta where he allowed only two runs and struck out eight batters in six innings.

The Phillies have also been a dominant postseason team at home.

"We've got the best fans in the world. They've got to come in and beat us," Harper said.