(Photo credit: Jerome Miron-Imagn Images)

The good news for the San Diego Padres: They will start a six-game homestand on Monday night after finishing a 4-5 road trip Sunday with a 4-3 loss against the Texas Rangers.

The bad news: Beginning with the series opener against the Atlanta Braves on Monday, the Padres will be facing the top two teams in the National League.

After three games with Atlanta, San Diego will spend the weekend grappling with the Los Angeles Dodgers.

That would be a daunting task if San Diego were at the top of its game. Right now, with the team's starting pitching not offering a lot of quality innings and the offense still searching for its best form, the timing to see two excellent opponents isn't optimal.

'I think the biggest thing is this is a fun challenge,' Padres manager Craig Stammen said of the upcoming schedule. 'You're playing the people who are playing the best baseball. Now we get to see where we stand.'

Where the team stands is just off the playoff picture in a crowded NL race. The good news is that an offense that still ranks last in the majors in average, on-base percentage and slugging percentage is at least beginning to score some runs.

The Padres averaged 4.6 on the just-completed road trip, nearly a run per game more than their season average. Fernando Tatis Jr., Jackson Merrill and Manny Machado have looked more like their normal selves at the plate, while recent call-up Samad Taylor has been a revelation, bringing home an 11-game hitting streak and a .362 batting average.

Right-hander Michael King (4-6, 3.60 ERA) hopes to tap into some of that firepower while aiming to snap his personal four-game losing streak. He took a 3-2 loss Tuesday in St. Louis, giving up three runs and five hits in 4 1/3 innings with three walks and a strikeout. King is 0-0 with a 4.26 ERA in two career outings against Atlanta.

He'll oppose Atlanta right-hander Grant Holmes (4-3, 4.33 ERA), who's coming off a 7-2 loss Tuesday vs. San Francisco in his last start. Holmes permitted four hits and three runs in two innings, walking three and striking out two, before the game was suspended due to rain.

In two career games against San Diego, Holmes has shined, going 1-0 with a 1.13 ERA. He beat the Padres 7-1 last year, the Braves' lone victory in seven meetings against them.

Atlanta comes into town off a 9-4 loss Sunday to Milwaukee that kept the Braves from sweeping the NL Central leaders. While the Braves are going through a rough patch, dropping seven of their last 10 games, they still own a 6 1/2-game lead over second-place Philadelphia in the NL East.

'We've won a lot of games, but nothing is coming easy for us right now,' said Atlanta manager Walt Weiss.

The Braves have excelled across the board this season, leading the majors in ERA at 3.40 while ranking in the top 10 in batting average, runs, homers and slugging percentage. Matt Olson is on pace for 40 homers and more than 100 RBI, while Michael Harris II (batting .306) and Ozzie Albies (12 homers) have enjoyed bounce-back seasons after struggling for most of 2025.

--Field Level Media