Gonzalez homers as Dodgers rout Padres

Adrian Gonzalez hit his third home run of an injury-plagued season as the Los Angeles Dodgers beat the San Diego Padres 9-2 on Tuesday night to clinch home-field advantage throughout the National League playoffs.

Yasmani Grandal and Corey Seager each had a three-run homer to back Alex Wood (16-3) as the NL West champions improved to 101-57. The victory, coupled with Washington’s loss at Philadelphia, guaranteed the Dodgers will finish with the best record in the NL.

They’ll open a best-of-five Division Series at home on October 6 against the winner of the NL wild-card game, hosted by Arizona. The Diamondbacks’ opponents have not been determined yet.

Home field advantage

The Dodgers also moved closer to securing homefield advantage if they reach the World Series for the first time since 1988. They are two and a half games ahead of Cleveland (98-59) for the top mark in the majors.

Los Angeles have scored nine runs against the Padres in consecutive games and won three straight overall.

Hunter Renfroe hit his 25th home run for San Diego, breaking the club’s rookie record set by Nate Colbert in 1969. Wood (16-3) needed just six pitches to get through the first inning. He pitched well until the fifth, when he allowed solo homers by Renfroe and Christian Villanueva.

Wood and teammate Clayton Kershaw have combined for 34 wins this season. Kershaw will make an abbreviated start on Saturday at Colorado in his final appearance before the playoffs.

Gonzalez, making his first start in two weeks and fighting for a spot on the postseason roster, hit an opposite-field solo shot to left in the seventh inning.