Mets at Padres: 5 things to watch and series predictions | Aug. 22-25

Here are five things to watch and predictions as the Mets and Padres play a four-game series in San Diego starting on Thursday night...

Preview

The Padres have been on fire since the All-Star break

San Diego has gone 22-6 since July 19 -- a hot stretch so prolonged that it has allowed them to pull away from the pack in the National League Wild Card race.

Yes, the Padres have beaten up on some really bad teams during this run -- going a combined 14-4 against the Nationals, Rockies, Pirates, and Marlins. But they've also done well against the elite teams they've faced, taking series from the Guardians, Orioles, Dodgers, and Twins.

Translation? The Padres are for real.

Their offense has been paced by Jurickson Profar, Jackson Merrill, and Manny Machado, but they recently took a hit when they lost Ha-Seong Kim to the IL. And they're still without Fernando Tatis Jr., who last played on June 21.

On the pitching side, San Diego's rotation is anchored by Dylan Cease and Michael King, and their starting five was bolstered when they got Joe Musgrove back earlier this month.

Meanwhile, their closer -- Robert Suarez -- has been elite, with a 1.79 ERA and 0.89 WHIP in 50 games.

This 10-game trip could define the Mets' season

After the Mets play their four-game series against the Padres, they'll head to Arizona for three games against the Diamondbacks before finishing their trip in Chicago against a White Sox team that is threatening to unseat the 1962 Mets as the most futile team in MLB history.

If New York can make it through this trip relatively unscathed -- not an easy task given the difficulty of the first seven games -- they'll almost certainly enter September still within striking distance of a playoff spot.

In order to have a successful trip, the Mets will need to tame two of the hottest teams in baseball and avoid a letdown against the worst team in baseball.

Consider this the latest challenge in a season where the Mets have repeatedly answered the call. They need to do it again.

The return of Dedniel Núñez

The Mets have been without Núñez for roughly a month, with him last pitching on July 23 against the Yankees in the Bronx.

But the right-hander could be activated ahead of the series-opener against the Padres after just one rehab appearance, which came on Tuesday for Triple-A Syracuse.

Getting Núñez back could be a huge boost for a Mets team that can desperately use another late-inning arm to go along with Edwin Diaz and Jose Butto.

The return of Núñez could also allow the Mets to ease up on how reliant they've been on Butto, who has often been asked to pitch two innings at a clip.

Can Jose Quintana bounce back?

After a string of dominant starts from June 15 to July 29, Quintana has hit a wall in August.

Over his last four starts, Quintana has an 8.27 ERA in 20.2 innings, allowing opponents to hit .282/.385/.539 against him during that span.

The Mets have lost all four of those starts.

Quintana's worst performance came on Tuesday night against the Orioles, when he allowed seven runs to Baltimore in just 5.0 innings.

With no obvious choice to replace him in the rotation at the moment, the Mets just have to hope Quintana rebounds.

How will the outfield mix work?

With Starling Marte back, he'll be in right field most days, with Brandon Nimmo in left.

But with Jesse Winker, Harrison Bader, and Tyrone Taylor, the Mets have three other outfielders worthy of playing time -- with the latter two bringing the most value with their center field defense.

The most tantalizing alignment offensively speaking would be having Nimmo in center, flanked by Winker in left and Marte in right.

While Nimmo has started 15 games in center this season, his inclusion there on a regular basis would mean removing an elite glove from the position (either Bader or Taylor) and put added stress on the guys to his left and right.

Predictions

Who will the MVP of the series be?

Francisco Alvarez

Alvarez seems ready to break out following his electrifying walk-off homer against the Orioles

Which Mets pitcher will have the best start?

David Peterson

Peterson was left in a bit too long during his start against the O's, but was brilliant over the first 6.0 innings

Which Padres player will be a thorn in Mets' side?

Jake Cronenworth

It's been a quiet month power-wise for Cronenworth to this point