First pitch: Tuesday, 10:10 p.m. ET
Line: New York -120, San Diego +110, Total: 6.5

The Mets will be going for their third straight victory when they face the Padres in San Diego on Tuesday.

New York lost its last series 2-1 against Miami, but the team did win its final game and opened up this set against the Padres with a 7-0 win. San Diego has now lost three of its past five games and is struggling to find any sort of consistency at the plate. The Padres have also allowed 10+ hits in four of the past six games and will need to be better against the Mets in the next two games or they will likely lose the series. On the mound for the Mets in this game will be RHP Noah Syndergaard (2-2, 1.82 ERA, 22 K), who has allowed one or less runs in three straight starts. He has immediately stepped in and started to show why he was regarded as one of New York’s top prospects over the past couple of years. LHP Ian Kennedy (2-5, 7.15 ERA) will be going up against Syndergaard, and he has really struggled this season. Kennedy was supposed to be a sturdy presence in the San Diego rotation, but he has allowed five or more runs in three of his past four starts. The Padres have also not been able to come away with a victory in his past four starts either. Over the past three seasons, the Mets and Padres have split victories when playing at Petco Park. The Mets are 22-6 against the money line as a favorite of -110 or higher this season. They are also, however, just 4-17 against the money line after two straight games where they stranded five or less runners on base over the past two seasons. 1B Lucas Duda (Knee) is questionable for this game and C Travis d’Arnaud (Hand) and 3B David Wright (Hamstring) are already on the DL for the Mets. CF Wil Myers (Wrist) is on the DL for the Padres, who are also without CF Melvin Upton Jr. (Foot).

The Mets have won two straight games and will now be very confident with Noah Syndergaard on the mound. The rookie is coming off of his best performance of the season, going 7.1 innings with no earned runs, six strikeouts and zero walks. Since allowing three earned runs in his first start this season, Syndergaard has allowed just two earned runs over the past three games. He’ll look to dial in against a Padres offense that is extremely inconsistent. Two guys who will really need to get it going offensively in this one are LF Michael Cuddyer (.260, 5 HR, 22 RBI) and RF Curtis Granderson (.228, 6 HR, 16 RBI). Both have experience against Ian Kennedy, as Cuddyer has 17 at-bats against the lefty in his career. He has gotten just four hits in those matchups, but he does have three doubles and a homer. He’s riding a seven-game hitting streak heading into this contest and must continue to see the ball well for a Mets team that is somewhat limited on offense. Granderson, however, has really gotten the better of Kennedy in his career. He is 5-for-9 with a homer, 3 RBI and three walks against the lefty and should be looking forward to this game, as he is 0-for-8 over the past two contests and can use some confidence.

The Padres are looking to turn their season around, but they will need Ian Kennedy to do so as well if that is ever going to happen. Kennedy is coming off of one of his worst starts of the season and must have a short memory coming into this one. He allowed seven hits and seven earned runs thanks to three Pittsburgh homers in an 11-5 loss against the Pirates on May 28. Kennedy recently stated that he has been having trouble finding his release point, but is confident that he has figured it out heading into this start. For the Padres, RF Matt Kemp (.246, 1 HR , 26 RBI) will need to turn things around. He was one of the prized acquisitions for the Padres in the offseason and has really struggled at the plate. LF Justin Upton (.302, 12 HR, 37 RBI) was on an eight-game hitting streak before going 0-for-3 against New York on Monday. He’s been by far this team’s best hitter and will need to get it going on Tuesday. 3B Will Middlebrooks (.239, 7 HR, 21 RBI) has hits in five of the past six games. He’s in a nice little groove at the plate and will need to get on base on Tuesday. The Padres are counting on him to find some consistency at the plate, especially as they wait for Melvin Upton Jr. to return to the lineup. Another guy who can really help San Diego in this one is C Derek Norris (.283, 4 HR, 32 RBI). Norris was 2-for-4 on Sunday and now has five multi-hit games in the past eight contests. He’s seeing the ball well and should be well-rested after being given the day off on Monday.