St. Louis @ San Francisco preview

Last Meeting ( Aug 29, 2015 ) St. Louis 6, San Francisco 0

If St. Louis Cardinals rookie outfielder Stephen Piscotty seems right at home this weekend at AT&T Park, it’s because he knows the area well. The Bay Area native and former Stanford star has six hits in his last eight at-bats heading into Sunday’s rubber match of a three-game series against the San Francisco Giants, who sit 3 1/2 games back of the National League West-leading Los Angeles Dodgers.

Piscotty recorded a career-high four hits in Saturday’s 6-0 victory and has 10 RBI over the last six games for the Cardinals, who hold a 3 1/2-game lead over Pittsburgh in the NL Central. Piscotty has been playing regularly in left field in place of Matt Holliday (quad strain) and should continue to see ample playing time over the next few weeks as the Cardinals wait for Randal Grichuk (elbow) and Jon Jay (wrist) to return. The Giants are also dealing with a number of injuries, but they're hoping to have catcher Buster Posey back in the lineup Sunday after he missed Saturday’s contest with a bruised elbow. Posey was hit by a pitch in Friday’s game and replaced by rookie Andrew Susac, who is mired in a 6-for-48 slump.

TV: 4:05 p.m. ET, FSN Midwest (St. Louis), CSN Bay Area (San Francisco)

PITCHING MATCHUP: Cardinals LH Jaime Garcia (6-4, 1.77 ERA) vs. Giants RH Chris Heston (11-7, 3.34)

Garcia looks to continue his dominance on the road, where he’s gone 9-3 with a 1.64 ERA in his last 14 outings dating back to Sept. 15, 2012. The 29-year-old recorded his 12th quality start in 13 outings this season after tossing six innings of one-run ball against Arizona last Tuesday. Justin Maxwell is 6-for-14 with a home run against Garcia, who allowed three runs in 6 1/3 innings against San Francisco on Aug. 19 and owns a 2.16 ERA in six career starts against the Giants.

Heston has been recalled from Triple-A Sacramento to start in place of Matt Cain (elbow), who was placed on the disabled list after struggling in five starts this month. The 27-year-old rookie, who has been a pleasant surprise while making 24 starts, only threw a few bullpen sessions after being sent to Sacramento on Aug. 21. Heston allowed one run while throwing 104 pitches over 4 2/3 innings in San Francisco’s 2-1 loss to St. Louis on Aug. 17.

WALK-OFFS

1. San Francisco SS Brandon Crawford (oblique) is expected to miss his fifth straight game Sunday but could return Monday against the Dodgers.

2. Cardinals RHP Lance Lynn exited Saturday’s game with a mild right ankle sprain but is expected to make his next start.

3. The Giants are 13-16 against NL Central opponents.

PREDICTION: Cardinals 6, Giants 2