By: Eric He

LOS ANGELES–The tables have surely turned in the NL West since the second half began.

Entering the All-Star break, the Giants had the best record in the major leagues at 57-33 and a 6.5 game lead in the division over the Dodgers, while Los Angeles was scuffling, battling an injury to Clayton Kershaw and the Yasiel Puig saga.

Since then, the tide has switched. The Giants have the worst record in baseball since the All-Star break, giving up the division lead while the Dodgers pounced. Now, it’s LA holding a one-game lead heading into a three-game set between the rivals at Chavez Ravine that starts on Tuesday.

The Giants just wrapped up a 10-game homestand with a 3-7 record. They dropped two of three games to the Orioles, were swept by the Pirates and split a four-game set with the Mets. Now, they head into a pivotal series against a division rival that could either end with them back atop the NL West or falling behind by even more games.

They will have the benefit of sending their best pitchers to the mound. Ace Madison Bumgarner will toe the rubber on Tuesday against Kenta Maeda. Bumgarner is 8-5 with a 2.40 ERA in his career at Dodger Stadium and will look to get the Giants off on the right foot.

Johnny Cueto follows on Wednesday. The All-Star Game starter has struggled in the second half, but hopes to get things going against the Dodgers’ Rich Hill, who will make his Dodgers’ debut after being traded from the A’s at the deadline. Hill has been dealing with a blister on his finger that has prevented him from pitching.

And Matt Moore, one of the Giants’ trade-deadline acquisitions, will get in on the NorCal-SoCal rivalry on Thursday. Moore has had issues with his command since coming over to San Francisco; perhaps a little extra added pressure will serve as a jump-start.

This is just the start of what will be a sprint for first in the division; the Giants and Dodgers will play each other nine times in the remaining month or so of the season, including a regular season finale three-game set at AT&T Park.

First pitch at Dodger Stadium for all three games this week will be 7:10 pm PST.