After taking two of three from the Orioles, the Nationals welcome another familiar foe – and a couple of former friends – to D.C. in the Mets. This four-game wraparound series provides another difficult home test for the local ballclub.

The Mets are the fifth visiting team the Nats will face that entered the season with October aspirations as they hold the best record in the major leagues. And of course, Juan Soto returns to Nationals Park for the first time wearing a Mets uniform after signing to his record-breaking contract over the offseason.

Gotta beat the best to be the best.

Jake Irvin will take the mound for his sixth start of the season in Friday’s series opener. The big right-hander is coming off back-to-back strong starts in which he shut out the Pirates over seven innings and then struck out nine Rockies over 6 ⅓ frames.

The last time Irvin faced the Mets in this ballpark, he shut them out over eight innings of one-hit ball with eight strikeouts on the Fourth of July.

Kodai Senga will take the mound for the Mets. The Japanese right-hander is off to a stellar start to his third major league season after missing most of last year with a shoulder injury. Senga is 3-1 with a 0.79 ERA and 0.971 WHIP over his first four outings. He has not given up a run since his first start on April 1 against the Marlins.

Nats hitters will have to be patient against Senga’s “ghost” forkball, which he throws 26.7 percent of the time.

WASHINGTON NATIONALS vs. NEW YORK METS

Where: Nationals Park

Gametime: 6:45 p.m. EDT

TV: MASN, MLB.tv

Radio: 106.7 The Fan, DC 87.7 (Spanish), MLB.com

Weather: Cloudy, 78 degrees, wind 12 mph out to left field

NATIONALS

SS CJ Abrams

LF James Wood1B Nathaniel LoweC Keibert Ruiz2B Luis García Jr.DH Josh BellRF Dylan Crews3B José Tena

CF Jacob Young

RHP Jake Irvin

METS

SS Francisco Lindor

RF Juan Soto

1B Pete Alonso

LF Brandon Nimmo

3B Mark Vientos

DH Jesse Winker

C Francisco Alvarez

2B Jeff McNeil

CF Tyrone Taylor

RHP Kodai Senga