San Francisco @ San Diego preview

Last Meeting ( Sep 29, 2012 ) San Francisco 3, San Diego 7

San Francisco is expected to rest many of its regulars in Sunday’s series finale against the San Diego Padres, who are looking for their first series victory over the Giants since 2010. After clinching the National League West last week, the Giants will rest regulars such as Buster Posey on Sunday before starting them in the season’s final three games against Los Angeles. The Padres have lost seven of their last 11 games, but third baseman Chase Headley is finishing his career year on a high note. Headley has 30 homers with 112 runs heading into the Padres’ final home game on Sunday. He’s the 18th player in the 43-season history of the franchise to hit 30 homers in a season, and only the fourth to reach the mark since Petco Park opened in 2004.

The Giants appear locked into the No. 3 playoff spot, which would mean they would open the postseason with two home games. Matt Cain and Madison Bumgarner figure to start the first two contests, with Tim Lincecum starting the third game. Bumgarner is 10-3 with a 2.38 ERA at home, but he’s 6-8 with a 4.40 ERA on the road. Second baseman Marco Scutaro carries a career-best 17-game hitting streak into Sunday’s game, while Posey is hitting a NL-leading .337 - eight points ahead of Pittsburgh's Andrew McCutchen with four games to play.

TV: 4:05 p.m. ET, CSNBA (San Francisco), Fox Sports SD (San Diego)

PITCHING MATCHUP: Giants RH Tim Lincecum (10-15, 5.15 ERA) vs. Padres RH Edinson Volquez (2-5, 3.42)

The Giants are looking for Lincecum to rebound after he allowed seven earned runs over four innings last Tuesday against Arizona. He’s 10-5 with a 2.28 in 21 career starts against the Padres, including 1-1 with a 4.34 ERA in three outings this season. He yielded five runs in 4 2/3 frames against San Diego on July 25 at AT&T Park.

Volquez has posted quality starts in three of his last six starts, including last Tuesday when he evened his season record by working seven shutout innings against the Dodgers. Volquez, who has limited opponents to a .232 batting average, is 2-1 with a 5.54 ERA in five career starts against the Giants.

WALK-OFFS

1. Lincecum’s 28 runs allowed in the first inning are the most in the majors.

2. The Padres are 42-38 at home, clinching a winning home record at Petco Park for the seventh time in nine seasons.

3. Since the All-Star break, the Giants have gone 24-9 on the road to lead the majors.