Swelling in right thumb keeps Posey out vs Padres

SAN DIEGO -- The Giants will try to salvage a series split without their best bat.

Buster Posey was out of Sunday's lineup because of swelling in his right thumb. Bruce Bochy said Posey will be able to start Tuesday, and he wanted to give him two full days off since the Giants have a travel day Monday.

When Posey returns, he'll catch Johnny Cueto. The right-hander's ankle felt good a day after he pitched a simulated game and he'll return to the rotation for the opener with the Diamondbacks. It at first seemed that Jeff Samardzija would be right behind him, but that's now up for discussion.

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Samardzija made a rehab start for the San Jose Giants on Saturday night and allowed six runs in the first inning while fighting command issues. He was much better after that, hitting 95 mph while piling up strikeouts late, and he reached 62 pitches. Still, Bochy said the staff is leaning toward having Samardzija (strained pectoral) make one more rehab start in the minors.

--- Mac Williamson homered again Saturday. It was his fourth of the season, but don't expect him in the big league outfield anytime soon.

"They haven't played that many games there, let's let these guys get some playing time and settled in, just like our guys," Bochy said. "Right now, we have no plans to make changes."

--- Austin Slater has started taking grounders at first in Triple-A. Bochy said the staff wants Slater, who was drafted as a second baseman, to get more versatility. The Giants are pleased with the way Gorkys Hernandez and Gregor Blanco have played as big league backup outfielders, and Williamson is now ahead of Slater in the pecking line for an outfield call-up. So this should help his cause.