Watching baseball is typically a weekend or weeknight indulgence \u2014 a welcome reprieve after the long, grinding hours of a workday. You clock out, hustle home in time for the first pitch, and then, for a few fleeting hours, lose yourself in the world\u2019s greatest dramas. The cheers, jeers, camaraderie and rivalries become your nightcap.<\/p>\n
For many fans, that refuge rarely collides with the responsibilities of a 9-to-5.<\/p>\n
But Game 4 of the National League Division Series between the Los Angeles Dodgers and Philadelphia Phillies is set to begin at 3:08 p.m. local time in Southern California.<\/p>\n
That means many Dodgers fans face a choice today: Playoff baseball or work.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf a game is at 6 p.m., you can skip out an hour early, go in earlier to end your day earlier; there are options,\u201d said Taylor Matthews, an operations manager for an audio sales company who also runs a Dodgers fan account on X. \u201cA game at 3 p.m. really requires you to be out of work by 12 and on your way to the stadium by 1 just to be in your seat by first pitch. So the time-off request becomes a bit heavier than just \u2018I need an hour off.’\u201d<\/p>\n
Fans in Philadelphia \u2014 hoping MVP candidate Kyle Schwarber<\/a> and the Phillies can stave off elimination and force a Game 5 back home in the City of Brotherly Love \u2014 will have a more favorable TV window, with first pitch set for 6:08 p.m. ET on TNT and its family of networks.<\/p>\n They\u2019ll get their football, too.<\/p>\n