Pirates vs Padres: Five Things to Watch

Fresh off a raucous, sellout home-opening weekend that extended their winning streak to five games, the Pittsburgh Pirates (6-3) welcome the San Diego Padres (4-5) to PNC Park on Monday night for the opener of a three-game series that could serve as an early-season measuring stick for both clubs.

The scene at the confluence of the Allegheny, Monongahela, and Ohio rivers was nothing short of electric over the weekend. The Pirates, fueled by a booming crowd that hasn't experienced winning baseball this deep into April in years, swept a three-game set from the Baltimore Orioles to push their record firmly above .500.

That energy now carries into Monday night’s first pitch (6:40 p.m. ET) as Pittsburgh looks to prove its hot start is more than just early-season luck against a star-laden Padres team that entered the year with post-season aspirations.

For San Diego, the visit to Pittsburgh represents a critical opportunity to steady a ship that has shown early signs of turbulence. While the Padres’ lineup, anchored by Manny Machado, Fernando Tatis Jr., and Xander Bogaerts, has undeniable name-power, the act of power-hitting has been elusive thus far. San Diego is second to last in MLB in home runs, with only five.

The pitching staff, 17th in team ERA, will have to contend not only with a suddenly confident Pirates order but also with the unique challenge of PNC Park’s spacious outfield and a potentially hostile crowd still buzzing from a memorable weekend.

With the Pirates chasing their sixth straight win and the Padres looking to play spoiler, here are five things to watch in this National League matchup.

1. How long can the Pirates keep the streak going?

The vibes in the clubhouse, PNC Park and beyond are immaculate right now. That will happen when you win baseball games. All the off-season talk of activity and a different team are actaully coming to fruition. As mentioned earlier, the Pirates are riding a five game win streak that dates back to their road series in Cincinnati. The closer you get a win streak to double digits, the more relevant it becomes. The longer a streak gets, the bigger the target on your back, as well. There's no doubt that San Diego will be equally aware of the Pirates streak. Can the Buccos keep the streak going against a Padres team that has struggled to get footing early in the season?

2. Will the starting pitching continue its domination?

Over their last eight games, Pirates starting pitchers have allowed a total of 10 earned runs across 42.1 innings pitched. That performance amounts to a 2.13 ERA, with every starter surrendering no more than two earned runs in each of their outings.

Starting pitching was what kept the Pirates in a lot of games last year, and it's a large part as to why they're winning now. The rotation was always going to be the focal point of this team, with arms like Paul Skenes, Bubba Chandler, Braxton Ashcraft and more. Now we're seeing what the team is capable of with an offense behind them.

Chandler gets the ball first. He'll look to correct some control issues he had in his first start of the season, giving up six walks. He managed to keep them all from closing home plate, but that amount of free passes isn't sustainable. The stuff is clearly there with Chandler, and he's a top-tier starter when he locates his fastball.

Skenes had a huge bounce back start last week after a disastrous Opening Day. He gets the nod on Tuesday and will look to continue to lower his abnormally high ERA.

The always, steady and consistent Mitch Keller takes the mound for the Wednesday matinee. He had another quality start on Friday, providing six innings and allowing two runs in an electric home opener atmosphere.

3. Konnor Griffin

Have you heard of this kid? It's again worth keeping a close eye on Griffin as this series unfolds. The 19-year-old made his big-league debut on Friday and immediately made an impact, lacing an RBI double in his first career at-bat against the Orioles and later coming around to score, which helped spark the offense that day.

Since that promising start, however, he has gone 0-for-8 at the plate. On the bright side, Griffin has already turned heads with his defensive play and has had some mature, big league at-bats that resulted in walks or productive outs. Given his age, fans and analysts alike should remember that growing pains are inevitable. There will be highs and lows throughout his season, so it's important not to overreact if he doesn't put up flashy numbers in this upcoming series.

4. Will the bats stay hot?

Can Pittsburgh can maintain their recent momentum at the plate? According to FanGraphs, Ryan O'Hearn leads all players who joined a new team in 2026 with a 0.6 WAR. He has been on fire to begin the year, posting a slash line of .367/.459/.700 to go along with three home runs and 11 RBIs.

Meanwhile, Brandon Lowe ranks third among newcomers with a 0.5 WAR. Their early production is an encouraging sign for a Pirates club that finished dead last in the majors in runs scored a season ago. If these offseason additions continue to deliver, it suggests the team's efforts to overhaul a historically weak offense are already paying dividends.

5. How does Don Kelly and the bullpen handle a deep Padres lineup?

It's only a matter of time before the Padres stable of All-Stars gets their bats going. The Pirates are aiming to make sure that it doesn't happen against them. A large part of that will depend on the bullpen, especially considering we are in April when starting pitchers rarely get stretched past the sixth inning. Manager Don Kelly has gone with a "closer by committee" approach with Dennis Santana and Gregory Soto both receiving save opportunities. Will that continue to work? How much longer will the leash be on Mason Montgomery? These are just a few of the questions that will almost certainly come up in a series where the bullpen could be the key to a series victory.

Key Stats

• Pirates Power: The Pirates' SLG% (.399) is seventh best in MLB
• Power-Sapped Padres: The Padres' SLG% (.324) is 29th in MLB
• The Pirates and Padres have met a total of 520 times. The Pirates lead the series 275-245.