5 things to watch as Mets face Nationals in two-game set

Here are five things to watch as the Mets face the Washington Nationals in a two-game set starting on Tuesday night at 7:05 p.m.

1. The summer of Stewart continues

DJ Stewart continues to absolutely mash for the Mets.

He's settled into a groove in New York, hitting .309 and posting an .800 slugging percentage over his last 15 games. Stewart’s also launched eight of his 10 homers over that span.

He went deep again this weekend, smacking a game tying three-run homer. That, of course, came just two days after he put together his first two-homer game of the season and picked up the game-winning RBI on a walk-off HBP.

In 38 games as a Met, Stewart’s hitting .265 with a stellar .970 OPS, five doubles, 10 home runs and 21 RBI. 

Stewart, a former first-round pick, battled numerous injures over the first few seasons of his big-league career. When healthy, though, he was a relatively solid power bat for Buck Showalter and the Baltimore Orioles.

With the way he’s been playing, he just might be playing his way into a bench spot for next season. Stewart's feeling as confident as ever and has been an absolute force in the middle of New York’s lineup.

He'll look to keep rolling in this two-game set against the Nats.

2. Quintana looks to continue cruising

Jose Quintana has been tremendous for the Mets since returning from the injured list.

He took the no-decision in his most recent outing but allowed just five hits while walking three and striking out five across six shutout innings against the Texas Rangers. Quintana battled despite not having his best stuff out there.

It was a strong bounceback outing for the lefty after struggling for the first time this season against the Atlanta Braves. That shaky start in Atlanta was the only time Q’s allowed more than three runs in a game across his eight starts.

He’s put together six quality starts on the year to go along with a 3.26 ERA and 35 strikeouts. The 34-year-old is a great veteran presence for this rotation both on and off the field and it’s a good thing they have him under control next season as well.

He’ll look to keep the ball rolling against the Nationals.

3. Mauricio’s red-hot start

Ronny Mauricio has hit the ground running in his first stint at the big-league level.

The top prospect put together a pair of multi-hit games in the three-game set against the Mariners. He also picked up his first career extra-base hit with a double and added a stolen base.

This continues a red-hot stretch for Mauricio, who was raking in August with Triple-A Syracuse. Prior to being called up, he put together one of his best stretches of the season.

Mauricio had five doubles, went deep seven times, and drove in 15 runs while posting a .915 OPS across his last 24 games. He also drew 11 walks, which is the most he's recorded in any month this season.

4. Vientos is expected back

Mark Vientos left Saturday night’s game with foot soreness. 

The third baseman was held out of Sunday’s lineup due to the injury but Buck Showalter said he expects to have him back out there for the series opener against the Nats.

Prior to leaving Saturday’s game, Vientos extended his hitting streak to three games and he has homers in two of those games, bringing his total to four on the season.

5. Alonso’s heating up

Pete Alonso is on another strong stretch at the plate.

The slugger launched his 40th and 41st home runs of the season on Sunday afternoon and reached the 100 RBI mark in the process. He went 3-for-4 with a pair of long balls and four runs driven in on the day.

Alonso now has hits in four straight games and he’s batting .296 with a .367 OBP over his last seven. He has the two homers and a double over that stretch to go along with a .960 OPS.

He's now just three behind Matt Olson and Shohei Ohtani for the MLB lead in homers. The All-Star has mashed in his career against the Nationals, posting 24 home runs and a 1.047 OPS in 77 games.