Nationals Vs. Cardinals, NLCS Game 1: Time, How To Watch, Info

Washington Nationals fans have barely had time to celebrate the delirious joy of watching Howie Kendrick's 10th-inning Game 5 grand slam against the Dodgers sail over the fence on Wednesday -- already, the Nats must get ready to take on the next opponent.

Game 1 of the National League Championship Series kicks off Friday night against the St. Louis Cardinals, who also needed five games to dispatch the favored Atlanta Braves. Because the Cardinals were a division winner, they will get home field advantage, playing the first two games (Friday and Saturday) at home, before the series shifts to D.C. for three games (Monday-Wednesday), and then back to St. Louis for two more, if necessary.

Unlike in the first round, the Nationals won't be heavy underdogs this time around. In fact, they may be the favorites, since they've had the best record in baseball since late May and were two games better than the Cards during the regular season. The Cards won the season series 5-2, but three of those wins came during the Nats' April-May slump.

If you can afford to fly out to St. Louis, tickets are still available for the series. You can get a 10 percent discount on tickets by using the code "PatchTickets10" at checkout. Here's everything you need to know about Game 1, and the series in general.

WHAT: NLCS Game 1, Washington Nationals (93-69) at St. Louis Cardinals (91-71)

WHERE: Busch Stadium, St. Louis, Mo.

WHEN: 8:08 p.m. EST

WHO: The starter for Game 1 hasn't been announced yet, but it could be Anibal Sanchez due to how heavily the Nationals leaned on their top three starters -- Max Scherzer, Stephen Strasburg, and Patrick Corbin -- during the Dodgers series. Sanchez was solid in Game 4, keeping the Dodgers bats mostly in check until they exploded later in the game. The starting lineup hasn't been announced yet but is likely to be similar to the Game 5 lineup, with Kurt Suzuki possibly returning to regular action.

HOW TO WATCH: You can watch the game on TBS. You also have the option of streaming through fuboTV.

WHAT OTHERS ARE SAYING:

The Washington Post: "Second postseason meeting between the teams. Cardinals won 3-2 in 2012 Division Series, when Nationals famously shut down Strasburg before playoffs to protect his arm following Tommy John surgery. St. Louis overcame 6-0 deficit in decisive Game 5 at Washington, rallying from two runs down with four in ninth inning to win 9-7. That was first of four NLDS heartbreaks in six seasons for Nationals — three in Game 5 at home — before they finally got over hump against NL-best Dodgers in Game 5 this year to win a playoff series for first time since team moved to Washington ahead of 2005 season."

USA Today: "It’s tempting to call this series a coin flip, but then again, coin flips are relatively easy to forecast. All signs point to a tightly-pitched, well played and possibly low-scoring series. It’s hard to side against the Nationals’ mojo, particularly after they’ve run off three wins in elimination games already. But the Cardinals put together an excellent pitching plan against the Braves and have the horses to cool the Nationals’ simmering bats. Throw in superior marks in the bullpen and defensively, and it’s enough little things that add up to the smallest of advantages."

CBS Sports: "I've slept on the Nationals for too long, but that ends now. I expect the series to go six games with Washington locking up its first trip to the World Series thanks to yet another dominant dual performance from 'Mad Max' and 'Stras.'"

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