SAN FRANCISCO — Following one of the most memorable walk-offs in Oracle Park history on Sunday, the Giants entered their first off day in two-and-a-half weeks with a 19-10 record and standing atop the NL West.

Now, they travel to San Diego for their first intradivision matchup of the season, a two-game set against the team that has spent more days in first this month than anyone else in the star-studded division.

“I remember last year, it was always fun battling against those guys,” Giants starter Jordan Hicks said. “You know what you’re going up against. They have a pretty elite lineup. We saw the pitching as well. It should be fun. It’s always a good environment in Petco, and it’s actually one of my favorite stadiums.”

The Padres seemed poised to take a bit of a step back after winning 93 games and taking the eventual World Series champion Dodgers to five games in their NL Division Series. In addition to losing outfielder Jurickson Profar and infielder Ha-Seong Kim to free agency, an ugly ownership dispute resulted in a relatively quiet offseason.

But with April nearing its end, the Padres (17-11) continue looking like a playoff-bound team. San Diego opened the season with seven straight wins and was 14-3 at one point. But the Giants enter the series with momentum. San Francisco has won five of its past seven, the past two on walk-off hits; the Padres have lost eight of their past 11 games and was just swept at home by the Rays. Over the weekend the Padres fell out of first place in the West for the first time in three weeks.

“It’s not as easy as we made it look and it’s not as hard as it is now,” manager Mike Shildt told reporters Sunday after the Padres’ losing streak was extended to a season-high four games. “I mean, you’re somewhere in between. What I say the difference is, look, I’ll take, I gotta be better more recently.

“Players are doing everything possible to be prepared, compete, play the game. They’re giving everything they possibly have, and no one is making excuses. If anybody needs to be better the last couple games, it’s me.”

The season is barely a month old, but clearly the Padres, Giants and Diamondbacks are going to give the Dodgers a run in the West. The top three teams entered the week separated by a game and a half in the standings. Fourth-place Arizona was just 3 1/2 games out of first.

“The competition is all we ask for,” Giants outfielder Heliot Ramos said. “They’ve been playing really good. As a team, you’ve already seen that we play together. We’re a strong team. We’re looking forward to it. We’re looking forward to competing and making a good impression.”

Some of the Padres’ recent struggles can be attributed to injuries. Unlike the Giants, whose roster has remained mostly untouched since the season opened, the Padres have had to mix-and-match their lineup in recent weeks. The team batting average is .204 during the past 11 games.

Two-time batting champ Luis Arraez missed the past six games because of a concussion, although the second baseman might be back in the lineup for Tuesday’s series opener. Veteran outfielder Jason Heyward also might return after missing nine games with inflammation in his left knee. Outfielder Jackson Merrill (an All-Star last season as a rookie who is recovering from a hamstring strain) and veteran Jake Cronenworth (fractured ribs) are not expected to return until after the Giants leave town.

But the Padres are still well-armed.

San Diego is led by an exceptional pitching staff, a unit whose 2.82 ERA ranks third in all of baseball. The Padres’ bullpen, in particular, has so far been elite, posting an MLB-best 1.63 ERA. The Giants, by comparison, have the second-best bullpen ERA at 2.30. Six of their relievers have an ERA under 2.00 or lower; three of their relievers have an ERA of 1.00 or lower. The Giants have proven themselves capable of overcoming early deficits (10 of their 19 wins have come with them trailing by at least two runs), but the Padres are not prone to blowing leads they establish.

There’s also the matter of Fernando Tatis Jr., who currently looks like the frontrunner for NL MVP. Tatis is currently posting a .346/.415/.625 slash line with eight homers and seven steals while playing elite defense, right at the top of the WAR leaderboard with the Diamondbacks’ Corbin Carroll. The Padres are waiting for Jackson Merrill and Jake Cronenworth to return from injury, but Tatis and Manny Machado are well capable of carrying an offense in the meantime.

While San Francisco’s pitchers contend with Tatis and company on the mound, their hitters will be tasked with facing Nick Pivetta and Michael King, both of whom have been fantastic to begin the season.

Pivetta was a late signing for the Padres, signing a four-year, $55 million deal with San Diego after pitchers and catchers had already reported for spring training. Through five starts, the 32-year-old is posting a 1.20 ERA with 30 strikeouts over 30 innings. King, whose sinker and changeup are among baseball’s best, has had a great start in his own right, owning a 2.18 ERA with 40 strikeouts over 33 innings.

The Giants will counter with Logan Webb against Pivetta and Landen Roupp versus King. Webb looks on his way to his second Midsummer Classic, posting a 1.98 ERA over six starts. Despite his status as a ground ball pitcher, Webb has struck out 44 batters over 36 1/3 innings with a pair of double-digit strikeout performances to his name already.

Roupp’s sophomore season has been a bit of a mixed bag, currently owning a 4.56 ERA with 31 strikeouts over five starts. The right-hander has enjoyed great outings against the Reds (6 IP, 1 ER) and Angels (7 IP, 2 ER, 9 K’s) but is coming off his shortest outing of the season, allowing five runs (three earned) over 3 2/3 innings against the Brewers.

“Honestly, at this point, it’s still so early in the year. I know there’s probably going to be a lot of stories and a lot of stuff written about it, but it’s another game at this point,” Giants outfielder Mike Yastrzemski said. “They’re all important, obviously, but they’re still all the same. It’s just a game. We’re going to go out there and play our game and give it our best and not put any more pressure on it than there already is.”