Does Dodgers’ lineup say they care about holding off the Mets?

And then Don Mattingly pulled another name out of a hat and said, “Austin Barnes, second base! Sure, why not?”

Well, maybe that’s not exactly how it went, but you could be forgiven for thinking that. The Dodgers may have a comfortable lead in the National League West, but they have only a half-game lead over the Mets -- their likely first-round playoff opponent -- for home-field advantage.

Which is kinda important. Would you rather have the Mets’ young starting pitchers making their postseason debut in front of a sellout crowd at Dodger Stadium or back in the comfy confines of Citi Field in New York?

Yet with 18 games remaining in the regular season, this is Manager Don Mattingly’s starting lineup Wednesday against the Rockies:

Barnes, second base
Chase Utley, first base
Justin Ruggiano, left field
Corey Seager, shortstop
A.J. Ellis, catcher
Alex Guerrero, third base
Chris Heisey, right
Joc Pederson, center
Alex Wood, pitcher

So that’s four players who likely won’t even be on the playoff roster. That’s a backup catcher making his major league debut at second. The second baseman playing first. Two guys who weren’t on the team two weeks ago batting third and fourth. And a guy almost forgotten about making his first start at third in a month.

Mattingly volunteered that it was a “weird lineup” and said it was largely the product of having played 16 innings Tuesday night and not wanting to push first baseman Adrian Gonzalez and third baseman Justin Turner.

There is also the injury factor: Howie Kendrick, Yasiel Puig, Enrique Hernandez and Jose Peraza are out, all with hamstring issues. Jimmy Rollins has a bruised knuckle, Carl Crawford a bad back, Scott Van Slyke a cyst on his hand. And the Rockies are starting a left-hander, so Mattingly sat Andre Ethier.

But still, the Dodgers are trying to hold off the Mets, right? Hernandez and Turner can’t toughen it out for one more day? The Dodgers are off Thursday.

“There were certain things we just weren’t willing to do today,” Mattingly said. “Adrian, I felt we really had to be careful. He texted me back and said he felt great. He felt great in Colorado and played both games of a doubleheader and kind of went into a little bit of a week-long thing. We’re just not willing to take the chance with him, with J.T. (Justin Turner) today.

“These guys can come into a game and be a part of it -- still pinch-hit and have something to do with us winning it. It just seems like after that game last night we just couldn’t do it to those two guys.”

Utley started two games at first for the Phillies this year. Barnes primarily played second in 2012 before being converted to catcher. Guerrero is the bat without a position. Seager, who’s played all of 12 major-league games, has primarily hit sixth but never cleanup.

It is Mattingly’s 121^st lineup of the year, and his strangest. With something very much still on the line, easily his strangest.