Armando Galarraga was having a blast early in the season.

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D-Backs vs. Padres series photos | Box

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The Diamondbacks right-hander, acquired in an off-season trade with the Detroit Tigers, won his first three games as a National Leaguer.

Those were the good old days.

Galarraga (3-4) lost for the fourth consecutive time Monday night, as the Diamondbacks fell 8-4 to the San Diego Padres in front of 17,958 at Chase Field and dropped to last place in the National League West.

Galarraga lasted five innings, allowing eight runs (five earned) and eight hits. He walked two and struck out one, throwing 94 pitches, 59 for strikes. In his previous three loses, Galarraga pitched 15 1/3 innings, getting tagged for 13 runs (nine earned) and 18 hits.

He had help losing this one.

After loading the bases and giving up two runs in the first inning, he needed a quick three-up and three-down in the second. It is what he should have had, but errors by second baseman Ryan Roberts and shortstop Stephen Drew led to three unearned runs.

Galarraga could not control the damage and gave up three more runs in the fifth before being pulled.

Padres reliever Chad Qualls, a former Diamondbacks closer, entered the game in the sixth inning with a runner on and two out and retired catcher Henry Blanco, who had two home runs off starter Clayton Richard (2-4). Qualls, who had myriad problems with the Diamondbacks last season, was greeted with a smattering of boos. He retired the Diamondbacks in order in the seventh.

Richard allowed three earned runs and five hits, striking out five and walking three.

Blanco, for the fourth time in his career, had a two-home-run game. He has six hits this season, four of them homers. His blast in the fifth, along with an RBI single by Melvin Mora, brought the Diamondbacks within 8-3.

The Diamondbacks missed a chance to make the fifth an even bigger inning, leaving two runners stranded as Justin Upton and Drew struck out swinging.

Upton atoned in the eighth with his eighth home run of the season to cut the deficit to 8-4.

At that point, the Diamondbacks began to make it more interesting. With one out, Drew singled and stole second, and Xavier Nady was hit by a pitch. Gerardo Parra struck out, and Miguel Montero, pinch-hitting for Blanco, lined out to right field.

The Padres wasted no time roughing up Galarraga, scoring twice in the first, on a bases-loaded single by Cameron Maybin and a sacrifice fly by Ryan Ludwick to shallow center field. Chris Young would have had a good shot at nailing the runner at home – but left fielder Parra drifted over far too much and impeded the play.

It turned uglier in the second for the Diamondbacks. Errors by Roberts and Drew led to three unearned runs, the key hit a double by Jason Bartlett that drove in a pair. The other RBI came on a single from Chase Headley.

And it did not take long to get worse. Ludwick’s two-run home run, which traveled 441 feet, powered a three-run fifth, and the Padres had an 8-1 lead.

Maybin was removed from the Padres’ lineup in the seventh inning as a precautionary measure because of tendinitis in his right knee.

PHOENIX (AP) – Ryan Ludwick homered and drove in three runs, Clayton Richard pitched into the sixth inning to end a four-game losing streak and the San Diego Padres beat the Arizona Diamondbacks 8-4 Monday night.

Cameron Maybin and Jason Bartlett had two RBIs apiece as the Padres roughed up Armando Galarraga (3-4) for five runs in the first two innings, giving Richard (2-4) plenty of cushion to earn his first win since April 2.

Chase Headley had three hits and drove in a run, and Mike Adams got the final five outs for his first save to give San Diego its fourth win in five games.

Henry Blanco hit a pair of solo homers and Justin Upton led off the eighth inning with his eighth of the season for Arizona in its seventh loss in 10 games.

San Diego had been one of the worst offensive teams in baseball before snapping to life last week.

The Padres scored 46 runs in six games and had 10 hits in the final five, a first since they did it in six straight in 2009. San Diego kept wrapping out hits early on, with Galarraga taking the brunt of it.

The right-hander who nearly had a perfect game for the Tigers last season was 0-3 with a 5.03 ERA in his previous four starts, piling up 14 walks in 19 2-3 innings – and wasn’t much better against San Diego.

The Padres scored two runs in the first inning on Maybin’s run-scoring single and a sacrifice fly by Ludwick. San Diego got three more off Galarraga the second, errors by shortstop Stephen Drew and second baseman Ryan Roberts leading to a two-run double by Bartlett and Headley’s RBI single.

Galarraga opened the fifth inning by walking Headley, who came around to score on Maybin’s sacrifice fly. Ludwick, who hit a three-run homer against Colorado on Sunday, then sent an over-the-plate 0-2 pitch deep into the seats in left-center for a two-run shot that put San Diego up 8-1.

Galarraga was lifted for a pinch hitter in the fifth inning after allowing eight runs – five earned – and eight hits with two walks.

Richard has struggled since beating the Cardinals in his opening start, going winless in seven outings, including the first four-game losing streak of his career.

The left-hander allowed two earned runs or fewer in three of those four starts while getting two total runs of support, but hurt himself the last time out, allowing eight runs and 10 hits in 3 1-3 innings.

Staked to a five-run lead after two innings, Richard was good enough to beat Arizona.

He allowed a leadoff homer to Blanco in the third inning and another solo shot to him in the fifth. Melvin Mora added a run-scoring single in the inning and Richard was done after walking Blanco with two outs in the sixth, leaving after allowing three runs and five hits.

Notes: Padres C Kyle Phillips was struck on the side of the head in the third inning, when Galarraga clocked him with his bat on the followthrough of a swing. Phillips went down and was attended by San Diego’s trainer for about a minute before deciding to stay in the game. He also was hit on the thigh by a pitch from Sam Demel in the eighth. … Blanco’s multihomer game was his first since April 11, 2009, against the Giants while playing for San Diego.

Copyright 2011 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

PHOENIX – Ryan Ludwick homered and drove in three runs, Clayton Richard pitched into the sixth inning to end a four-game losing streak and the San Diego Padres beat the Arizona Diamondbacks 8-4 Monday night.

Cameron Maybin and Jason Bartlett had two RBIs apiece as the Padres roughed up Armando Galarraga (3-4) for five runs in the first two innings, giving Richard (2-4) plenty of cushion to earn his first win since April 2.

Chase Headley had three hits and drove in a run, and Mike Adams got the final five outs for his first save to give San Diego its fourth win in five games.

Henry Blanco hit a pair of solo homers and Justin Upton led off the eighth inning with his eighth of the season for Arizona in its seventh loss in 10 games.

San Diego had been one of the worst offensive teams in baseball before snapping to life last week.

The Padres scored 46 runs in six games and had 10 hits in the final five, a first since they did it in six straight in 2009. San Diego kept wrapping out hits early on, with Galarraga taking the brunt of it.

The right-hander who nearly had a perfect game for the Tigers last season was 0-3 with a 5.03 ERA in his previous four starts, piling up 14 walks in 19 2-3 innings — and wasn’t much better against San Diego.

The Padres scored two runs in the first inning on Maybin’s run-scoring single and a sacrifice fly by Ludwick. San Diego got three more off Galarraga the second, errors by shortstop Stephen Drew and second baseman Ryan Roberts leading to a two-run double by Bartlett and Headley’s RBI single.

Galarraga opened the fifth inning by walking Headley, who came around to score on Maybin’s sacrifice fly. Ludwick, who hit a three-run homer against Colorado on Sunday, then sent an over-the-plate 0-2 pitch deep into the seats in left-center for a two-run shot that put San Diego up 8-1.

Galarraga was lifted for a pinch hitter in the fifth inning after allowing eight runs — five earned — and eight hits with two walks.

Richard has struggled since beating the Cardinals in his opening start, going winless in seven outings, including the first four-game losing streak of his career.

The left-hander allowed two earned runs or fewer in three of those four starts while getting two total runs of support, but hurt himself the last time out, allowing eight runs and 10 hits in 3 1-3 innings.

Staked to a five-run lead after two innings, Richard was good enough to beat Arizona.

He allowed a leadoff homer to Blanco in the third inning and another solo shot to him in the fifth. Melvin Mora added a run-scoring single in the inning and Richard was done after walking Blanco with two outs in the sixth, leaving after allowing three runs and five hits.

Notes: Padres C Kyle Phillips was struck on the side of the head in the third inning, when Galarraga clocked him with his bat on the followthrough of a swing. Phillips went down and was attended by San Diego’s trainer for about a minute before deciding to stay in the game. He also was hit on the thigh by a pitch from Sam Demel in the eighth. … Blanco’s multihomer game was his first since April 11, 2009, against the Giants while playing for San Diego.

(Sports Network) – The Arizona Diamondbacks will try to match their longest
winning streak of the season tonight when they open a brief two-game series
with the San Diego Padres at Chase Field.

The Diamondbacks have won their last two outings since a five-game losing
streak, a rut in which they lost each game by a single run. However, they
turned the tables to snap the skid on Saturday with a 1-0 win over the
Dodgers, then won the series with yesterday’s 4-1 triumph.

Xavier Nady and Ryan Roberts hit back-to-back homers in the second inning to
back Ian Kennedy, who went six innings and allowed one run on four hits with
eight strikeouts.

“Today was a battle throwing strikes. My command wasn’t as good and my
curveball wasn’t as good early, but I had good defense behind me,” Kennedy
said of his performance.

Arizona is hoping to win a season-high three straight for the first time since
April 17-20, but may need starter Armando Galarraga to end his own losing
streak to do so.

The right-hander is winless in his last four outings since claiming a victory
in each of his first three starts of the season. He is 0-3 with a 5.03 earned
run average over his current winless stretch and is coming off a loss in San
Francisco on Wednesday. Galarraga yielded four runs on eight hits and three
walks over 5 1/3 innings of work.

Galarraga, who is 3-3 with a 5.50 ERA on the season in seven starts, faced the
Padres for the first time in his career on May 6, but the 29-year-old did not
factor into the decision of Arizona’s 4-3 loss in extra innings. Galarraga
lasted a season-low 4 1/3 innings, getting charged with three runs — two
earned — on three hits and six walks.

Like Galarraga, Padres starter Clayton Richard will also be looking for his
first victory in some time. The left-hander hasn’t won since his season debut
on April 2 and picked up his fourth losing start in a row in Milwaukee on
Tuesday. Despite getting a fair number of ground balls, Richard yielded season
highs of eight runs (seven earned) and 10 hits over just 3 1/3 innings.

“It’s just unfortunate when you feel like you’re making pitches and they’re
doing what you want them to do,” said Richard on San Diego’s website.

The 27-year-old is 1-4 on the season with a 4.79 ERA in eight starts and has
never lost to the D-Backs, going 2-0 in three starts despite a 5.63 ERA.

Richard will hope for similar success to what Mat Latos had in Sunday’s rubber
match with the Colorado Rockies. Latos was able to pick up his first win of
the season by giving up just two runs — one earned — on four hits and three
walks over 5 2/3 innings of an 8-2 triumph, San Diego’s second straight and
third in four games.

“I think that is a huge weight off of his shoulders,” said San Diego manager
Bud Black about Latos, a 14-game winner last year who was winless in 11
straight starts dating back to last year.

“But it’s just one game and he needs to build off of this.”

Ryan Ludwick’s three-run homer helped back Latos and Jason Bartlett added a
two-run double during a five-run seventh inning.

The Padres took two of three from the Diamondbacks at home back in early May.

The Sports Network

MILWAUKEE — Jonathan Lucroy was in no mood to celebrate a career night.

The Brewers catcher believed his poor handling of his starting pitcher allowed the San Diego Padres to nearly rally from an eight-run deficit, got hit in the jaw on his foul tip and made a baserunning mistake that ran his team out of a big inning.

“Good thing we scored a lot of runs because I’m not happy with the way the game went pitching wise, me calling the game,” Lucroy said. “They scored way too many runs for what I want. We shouldn’t give up that many and I take a lot of that on myself.”

Lucroy tied career highs with three hits and three RBIs and Shaun Marcum won his fourth straight decision, lifting Milwaukee to an 8-6 victory over the San Diego Padres on Tuesday night.

“I got three hits. Great, grand, wonderful. Who cares,” Lucroy said. “We still have things we need to work on. There’s things, defensively, I need to work on to help our staff get better.”

Milwaukee built an 8-0 lead off Padres starter Clayton Richard (1-4) as every Brewers starter had at least one hit before having to hold on late.

Lucroy provided two of the biggest blows with a two-run single in the second and an RBI double in the fourth. He also singled in the eighth after fouling a ball into the dirt that ricocheted and hit him in the jaw.

Marcum (4-1) had faced the minimum on one hit through five innings, but the light-hitting Padres came alive in the seventh with five straight singles that chased the right-hander.

“I’m not very happy about this game. We’re winning 8-0 and we’ve got our setup guy in there, who we really didn’t want to bring in, and we had to use our closer again,” Brewers manager Ron Roenicke said. “We finally score a bunch of runs, we need to hold them down.”

San Diego got the tying run to the plate in the eighth and the winning run up in the ninth.

John Axford recorded his seventh save after Will Venable’s two-out, run-scoring single cut it to 8-6 and Jason Bartlett followed with a hit to put runners on the corners before Ryan Ludwick grounded out to end it. Ludwick is hitless in his last 21 at-bats.

“Down 8-0 early in the game, we really have nothing to lose,” Padres catcher Kyle Phillips said. “We were one blast away from tying that game, or an extra-base hit from tying that game.”

The last four days, the Brewers have seen the starting pitching performances they’d hoped for when they traded for Marcum and Zack Greinke in the offseason.

Marcum has been sharp after his first start, Greinke won his first game on Monday night with six effective innings and Yovani Gallardo allowed one hit over eight innings in his last start on Saturday.

MILWAUKEE – Jonathan Lucroy tied career highs with three hits and three RBIs and Shaun Marcum won his fourth straight decision, lifting the Milwaukee Brewers to an 8-6 victory over the San Diego Padres on Tuesday night.

Milwaukee built an 8-0 lead off Padres starter Clayton Richard (1-4) as every Brewers starter had at least one hit for the night before having to hold on late.

Lucroy provided two of the biggest blows with a two-run single in the second and an RBI double in the fourth. He also singled in the eighth after fouling a ball into the dirt that ricocheted and hit him in the jaw.

Marcum (4-1) had faced the minimum on one hit through five innings, but the light-hitting Padres came alive in the seventh with five straight singles that chased the right-hander.

It was too big a deficit to overcome.

San Diego got the tying run to the plate in the eighth and the winning run up in the ninth.

John Axford recorded his seventh save after Will Venable’s two-out, run-scoring single cut it to 8-6 and Jason Bartlett followed with a hit to put runners on the corners before Ryan Ludwick grounded out to end it.

The last four days, the Brewers have seen the starting pitching performances they’d hoped for when they traded for Marcum and Zack Greinke in the offseason.

Marcum has been sharp throughout the season after his first start, Greinke won his first game on Monday night with six effective innings and Yovani Gallardo allowed one hit over eight innings in his last start on Saturday.

Milwaukee jumped on Richard in the second with five straight singles, including a run-scoring hit by Corey Hart, his first RBI of the season, and two RBIs by Lucroy before both were thrown out in an awkward 7-5-4-6-4 run down.

The baserunning gaffe hardly slowed Milwaukee.

The Brewers plated three more in the third on Ryan Braun’s run-scoring single and Casey McGehee’s two-run hit. Braun, the NL’s player of the month for April, had been 3 for 33 before his hit gave him his first RBI in May.

Richard was chased in the fourth after an error, an RBI double by Lucroy and Rickie Weeks’ run-scoring single that gave Milwaukee an 8-0 lead.

Lucroy’s three-hit effort improved his batting average to .324, the best among the Brewers regulars.

All the early runs proved to be enough against the Padres, who’ve managed eight or more just twice this season and came in batting a major league-worst .216.

Marcum allowed a leadoff single to start the game to Venable, then retired the next 14 batters until Kyle Phillips’ bloop double started the sixth.

San Diego scored later in the inning on Barlett’s single, and Marcum failed to get an out in the seventh after five straight hits.

Phillips drove in two runs with his single and Alberto Gonzalez followed with a single that made it 8-4, chasing Marcum. Reliever Marco Estrada followed with a double play, but a wild pitch allowed Phillips to score to set up the save situation.

NOTES: Richard, C Nick Hundley and RHP Tim Stauffer spent time earlier Tuesday visiting with patients at the Veterans Administration Medical Center in Milwaukee as part of Athletes for Hope. … Brewers RHP Brandon Kintzler (right triceps irritation) will undergo an MRI. Kintzler hasn’t pitched since the second game of a doubleheader in Atlanta on May 4. … Miller Park’s roof was open for the second time this season.

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Colin Fly can be reached at http://www.twitter.com/cfly

SAN DIEGO (AP) – The San Diego Padres pride themselves on pitching and defense. Both came up short in a 7-4 loss to the Pittsburgh Pirates.

Ryan Doumit’s grand slam highlighted a six-run third inning and Kevin Correia beat his old team Wednesday, when the Pirates won to take two of three from the Padres.

Two errors in the third inning led to six unearned runs for the Pirates.

“It hasn’t (clicked),” manager Bud Black said of the Padres’ defense. “Those games where we’ve had miscues, we haven’t been able to overcome them by outscoring the other team.”

The Pirates are playing well away from Pittsburgh. They’ve won five road series already, one more than they did all of last year. They’ve got 11 road wins – last year they didn’t get their 11th until June 28.

The Padres are a major league-worst 5-13 at home.

Correia (5-2), has won all five road starts this year, with a 1.55 ERA. He allowed two runs and five hits in six-plus innings, struck out three and walked two.

The Padres didn’t bring back Correia after he went 10-10 with a 5.40 ERA last year, when he lost his spot in the rotation in September. The year before, he was San Diego’s most consistent starter, going 12-11 with a 3.91 ERA in 33 starts.

Pittsburgh benefited from two Padres errors in the third to score six unearned runs on just three hits against lefty Clayton Richard (1-3).

After Correia struck out, Andrew McCutchen singled and was safe on Xavier Paul’s dribbler in front of the plate when catcher Nick Hundley threw wide of second for an error. The Pirates loaded the bases when third baseman Chase Headley couldn’t get the handle on Matt Diaz’s grounder for another error. Neil Walker hit a two-run single before Steve Pearce walked to load the bases again.

Doumit unloaded them with a grand slam to left on a full-count for a 7-0 lead. It was his third career grand slam and second homer of the season.

“You have to make plays,” Black said. “You can’t afford to extend innings and it hurt us in the biggest way with the grand slam.”

Walker drew a leadoff walk in the second and eventually scored on a force play.

Correia was chased in the seventh when Brad Hawpe doubled in Cameron Maybin, aboard on a leadoff single. The Padres scored their first run in the fourth when Will Venable hit a leadoff triple and came in on Ryan Ludwick’s groundout.

San Diego’s Brad Hawpe hit his first homer of the year, a solo shot to center leading off the ninth off Jose Veras. It went an estimated 435 feet. With one out, Eric Patterson hit a solo shot to right, his second in as many games.

Richard is winless in six starts since a victory at St. Louis on April 2, the second game of the season. He allowed seven runs, one earned, on four hits in five innings. He struck out four and walked three.

NOTES: Correia is the first Pirates pitcher to win his first five road starts since Don Robinson, who won his first seven in 1982. … The Padres placed 2B Orlando Hudson on the 15-day DL with a strained right hamstring and selected infielder Logan Forsythe from Triple-A Tucson. Hudson was hurt in Tuesday night’s 6-5 win. Forsythe made his big league debut, grounding out while pinch-hitting for Richard. … The Padres also transferred LH reliever Joe Thatcher from the 15-day to the 60-day DL.

Copyright 2011 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

SAN DIEGO – The San Diego Padres pride themselves on pitching and defense. Both came up short in a 7-4 loss to the Pittsburgh Pirates.

Ryan Doumit’s grand slam highlighted a six-run third inning and Kevin Correia beat his old team Wednesday, when the Pirates won to take two of three from the Padres.

Two errors in the third inning led to six unearned runs for the Pirates.

“It hasn’t (clicked),” manager Bud Black said of the Padres’ defense. “Those games where we’ve had miscues, we haven’t been able to overcome them by outscoring the other team.”

The Pirates are playing well away from Pittsburgh. They’ve won five road series already, one more than they did all of last year. They’ve got 11 road wins — last year they didn’t get their 11th until June 28.

The Padres are a major league-worst 5-13 at home.

Correia (5-2), has won all five road starts this year, with a 1.55 ERA. He allowed two runs and five hits in six-plus innings, struck out three and walked two.

The Padres didn’t bring back Correia after he went 10-10 with a 5.40 ERA last year, when he lost his spot in the rotation in September. The year before, he was San Diego’s most consistent starter, going 12-11 with a 3.91 ERA in 33 starts.

Pittsburgh benefited from two Padres errors in the third to score six unearned runs on just three hits against lefty Clayton Richard (1-3).

After Correia struck out, Andrew McCutchen singled and was safe on Xavier Paul’s dribbler in front of the plate when catcher Nick Hundley threw wide of second for an error. The Pirates loaded the bases when third baseman Chase Headley couldn’t get the handle on Matt Diaz’s grounder for another error. Neil Walker hit a two-run single before Steve Pearce walked to load the bases again.

Doumit unloaded them with a grand slam to left on a full-count for a 7-0 lead. It was his third career grand slam and second homer of the season.

“You have to make plays,” Black said. “You can’t afford to extend innings and it hurt us in the biggest way with the grand slam.”

Walker drew a leadoff walk in the second and eventually scored on a force play.

Correia was chased in the seventh when Brad Hawpe doubled in Cameron Maybin, aboard on a leadoff single. The Padres scored their first run in the fourth when Will Venable hit a leadoff triple and came in on Ryan Ludwick’s groundout.

San Diego’s Brad Hawpe hit his first homer of the year, a solo shot to center leading off the ninth off Jose Veras. It went an estimated 435 feet. With one out, Eric Patterson hit a solo shot to right, his second in as many games.

Richard is winless in six starts since a victory at St. Louis on April 2, the second game of the season. He allowed seven runs, one earned, on four hits in five innings. He struck out four and walked three.

NOTES: Correia is the first Pirates pitcher to win his first five road starts since Don Robinson, who won his first seven in 1982. … The Padres placed 2B Orlando Hudson on the 15-day DL with a strained right hamstring and selected infielder Logan Forsythe from Triple-A Tucson. Hudson was hurt in Tuesday night’s 6-5 win. Forsythe made his big league debut, grounding out while pinch-hitting for Richard. … The Padres also transferred LH reliever Joe Thatcher from the 15-day to the 60-day DL.

Lenny Ignelzi/Associated Press

SAN DIEGO — Ryan Doumit’s third-inning grand slam propelled the Pirates to a 7-4 outslugging of the San Diego Padres tonight at Petco Park.

The Pirates had taken a 1-0 lead in the second when Neil Walker walked, advanced on a Doumit walk, stole third and scored on a groundout.

And they would erupt for six in the third, thanks in part to miserable defense by San Diego.

Andrew McCutchen led off with a single, and Xavier Paul and Matt Diaz each reached on an error, the first on a wide throw to second by catcher Nick Hundley, the next when third baseman Chase Headley failed to scoop up a sharp grounder. Bases were loaded.

Walker drove in two runs with a single lashed into center, and Steve Pearce walked to load the bases anew.

Doumit, batting right-handed against the left-hander Clayton Richard, worked the count full before annihilating a 91-mph fastball into the seats beyond left-center, which at Petco means beyond a 401-foot mark.

The ball was struck with such force that it never appeared to go more than 30-40 feet off the ground, and Doumit still flicked his bat and began a home run trot right away.

The Pirates’ lead was 7-0.

Doumit, the Pirates’ most tenured player, went 2 for 3 with a walk but is off to a .259 start, the home run was only his second, and the RBI total jumped from five to nine. His playing time is down to once every three days, and this after the Pirates’ management aggressively shopped him for a trade in the offseason. No match was found, probably because of his $5.1 million salary.

Ask Doumit about that topic, and his answer never changes.

There was much else for the Pirates to relish about this one:

> The road record improved to 11-8, representing the most wins in Major League Baseball, a dramatic turnaround from the 17-64 disaster in 2010.

> The 4-2 trip through Denver and here brought two more road series victories for a total of five, one more than in 2010.

> Starter Kevin Correia’s six-plus solid innings — two runs, five hits — raised his record to 5-2, including road marks of 5-0 and a 1.56 ERA. He became the first Pittsburgh pitcher to win his first five road starts since Don Robinson won his first seven in 1982.

First published on May 4, 2011 at 10:00 pm

Cole Hamels said there was nothing special about holding his hometown San Diego Padres to four hits on Friday night.

Fans in two full sections at Petco Park thought otherwise, giving Hamels a standing ovation as he walked off the mound after the eighth inning in the Philadelphia Phillies’ 2-0 win over the punchless Padres.

“It’s just another place. Nicer weather,” said Hamels, the 2008 World Series MVP who went to San Diego’s Rancho Bernardo High School.

“I like pitching in any ballpark,” Hamels said. “Truly, I pitch well in small ballparks, big ballparks, good weather, bad weather. It’s just coming out and trying to get the team. It’s not necessarily how big the ballpark is, it’s who you’re facing. I’ve been able to do well against certain teams, and the Padres are on that list. Thank God Adrian left.”

That was a reference to three-time All-Star Adrian Gonzalez, who was traded from San Diego to Boston in December.

The Phillies handed San Diego its second straight shutout and third in five games.

Hamels’ fine performance was the second straight by Philadelphia’s sensational staff against the weak-hitting Padres. On Thursday night, Roy Oswalt and three relievers combined for a four-hit, 3-0 win.

The Padres have gone 21 scoreless innings since Wednesday night’s win in a split doubleheader at Chicago. San Diego has been shut out a major league-leading six times in 20 games. It was Philadelphia’s major league-leading fifth shutout.

“No matter when you face them, you are going to be in for it,” San Diego manager Bud Black said. “You have to be on your game to score runs against these guys. Runs are hard to come by.”

After the Padres face Joe Blanton on Saturday night, they will go up against reigning NL Cy Young Award winner Roy Halladay.

“It was fantastic,” manager Charlie Manuel said about Hamels’ performance. “It was really good.”

Hamels threw 126 pitches, one short of his career-high. Hamels retired Jorge Cantu for the final out of the eighth inning with a runner on first. Had Cantu reached base, Manuel would have lifted Hamels.

“Where he was at with the pitch count and everything like that, I definitely wasn’t going to let him lose the game,” Manuel said.

Hamels “was mixing all his pitches,” Cantu said. “He was pitching backward, right at you, one in, one out, you name it. He pitched a great game.”

Hamels (2-1) got all the support he needed when Ryan Howard hit a two-run triple off Clayton Richard (1-1) with two outs in the third.

Hamels struck out eight and walked three.

Ryan Madson pitched the ninth for his first save.

Hamels also had two singles. His first came in the third, but he was caught off the bag for the first out, so he wasn’t on board when Howard hit his booming triple into the gap in right-center. Shane Victorino and Placido Polanco were on base after drawing consecutive walks and advancing on Clayton Richard’s wild pitch.

“That didn’t turn out too well,” Richard said of the slider to Howard. “He put a good swing on an average pitch. I don’t think it was a terrible pitch but he did a good job with it.”

Richard said it was just as frustrating to walk the batters ahead of Howard.

“Great hitters like him, they’ll get their doubles, triples, their home runs,” he said. “It’s minimizing the damage before that.”

The Phillies have won nine straight and 13 of 14 at Petco Park since the 2008 season.

The Padres threatened in the second when Ryan Ludwick walked and Cameron Maybin doubled with one out. After Hamels struck out Will Venable, Alberto Gonzalez was intentionally walked before Richard lined out to shortstop Jimmy Rollins.

Richard allowed two runs and six hits in 7 1-3 innings, struck out four and walked four.

NOTES: Padres 3B Chase Headley didn’t start due to an illness but he entered during a double switch in the top of the eighth. … Padres OF Chris Denorfia was sidelined by a strained groin.

SAN DIEGO – With Philadelphia’s outstanding pitching staff in town, the San Diego Padres’ bats have fallen silent at a really bad time.

Cole Hamels held his punchless hometown Padres to four hits in eight innings and the Phillies won 2-0 on Friday night, handing San Diego its second straight shutout and third in five games.

The Phillies have thrown consecutive four-hitters against the Padres, who have gone 21 scoreless innings since Wednesday night’s win in a split doubleheader at Chicago. San Diego has been shut out a major league-leading six times in 20 games. It was Philadelphia’s major league-leading fifth shutout.

On Thursday night, Roy Oswalt and three relievers combined for a four-hit, 3-0 win.

“There’s no doubt we are struggling to score runs,” manager Bud Black said. “They know what’s going on. They are doing everything they can. We are in that period where we are not scoring. But I do know we are going to come out of it.

“When you look at the talent, we think certain guys are not going to stay at the level they are right now,” Black added.

Hamels (2-1), who went to San Diego’s Rancho Bernardo High, got all the support he needed when Ryan Howard hit a two-run triple off Clayton Richard (1-1) with two outs in the third.

Hamels struck out eight and walked three.

Ryan Madson pitched the ninth for his first save.

“We just have to find a way out,” San Diego’s Jorge Cantu said. “We have to do it now. We can’t afford to wait.

“I personally feel a little bit bad about it because they are pounding the zone, too, just like our opponents,” Cantu said of the Padres’ pitchers. “But we just can’t execute offensively. That’s got to turn around.”

Hamels also had two singles. His first came in the third, but he was caught off the bag for the first out, so he wasn’t on board when Howard hit his booming triple into the gap in right-center. Shane Victorino and Placido Polanco were on base after drawing consecutive walks and advancing on Clayton Richard’s wild pitch.

The Phillies have won nine straight and 13 of 14 at Petco Park since the 2008 season.

The Padres threatened in the second when Ryan Ludwick walked and Cameron Maybin doubled with one out. After Hamels struck out Will Venable, Alberto Gonzalez was intentionally walked before Richard lined out to shortstop Jimmy Rollins.

Richard allowed two runs and six hits in 7 1-3 innings, struck out four and walked four.

NOTES: Padres 3B Chase Headley didn’t start due to an illness but he entered during a double switch in the top of the eighth. … Padres OF Chris Denorfia was sidelined by a strained groin. … The four-game series continues Saturday night with Phillies RHP Joe Blanton scheduled to face RHP Tim Stauffer. RHP Roy Halladay is scheduled to start for the Phillies on Sunday while LHP Wade LeBlanc is expected to be recalled from Triple-A Tucson to start for the Padres.

SAN DIEGO (AP) – With Philadelphia’s outstanding pitching staff in town, the San Diego Padres’ bats have fallen silent at a really bad time.

Cole Hamels held his punchless hometown Padres to four hits in eight innings and the Phillies won 2-0 on Friday night, handing San Diego its second straight shutout and third in five games.

The Phillies have thrown consecutive four-hitters against the Padres, who have gone 21 scoreless innings since Wednesday night’s win in a split doubleheader at Chicago. San Diego has been shut out a major league-leading six times in 20 games. It was Philadelphia’s major league-leading fifth shutout.

On Thursday night, Roy Oswalt and three relievers combined for a four-hit, 3-0 win.

“There’s no doubt we are struggling to score runs,” manager Bud Black said. “They know what’s going on. They are doing everything they can. We are in that period where we are not scoring. But I do know we are going to come out of it.

“When you look at the talent, we think certain guys are not going to stay at the level they are right now,” Black added.

Hamels (2-1), who went to San Diego’s Rancho Bernardo High, got all the support he needed when Ryan Howard hit a two-run triple off Clayton Richard (1-1) with two outs in the third.

Hamels struck out eight and walked three.

Ryan Madson pitched the ninth for his first save.

“We just have to find a way out,” San Diego’s Jorge Cantu said. “We have to do it now. We can’t afford to wait.

“I personally feel a little bit bad about it because they are pounding the zone, too, just like our opponents,” Cantu said of the Padres’ pitchers. “But we just can’t execute offensively. That’s got to turn around.”

Hamels also had two singles. His first came in the third, but he was caught off the bag for the first out, so he wasn’t on board when Howard hit his booming triple into the gap in right-center. Shane Victorino and Placido Polanco were on base after drawing consecutive walks and advancing on Clayton Richard’s wild pitch.

The Phillies have won nine straight and 13 of 14 at Petco Park since the 2008 season.

The Padres threatened in the second when Ryan Ludwick walked and Cameron Maybin doubled with one out. After Hamels struck out Will Venable, Alberto Gonzalez was intentionally walked before Richard lined out to shortstop Jimmy Rollins.

Richard allowed two runs and six hits in 7 1-3 innings, struck out four and walked four.

NOTES: Padres 3B Chase Headley didn’t start due to an illness but he entered during a double switch in the top of the eighth. … Padres OF Chris Denorfia was sidelined by a strained groin. … The four-game series continues Saturday night with Phillies RHP Joe Blanton scheduled to face RHP Tim Stauffer. RHP Roy Halladay is scheduled to start for the Phillies on Sunday while LHP Wade LeBlanc is expected to be recalled from Triple-A Tucson to start for the Padres.

Copyright 2011 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

SAN DIEGO – With Philadelphia’s outstanding pitching staff in town, the San Diego Padres’ bats have fallen silent at a really bad time.

Cole Hamels held his punchless hometown Padres to four hits in eight innings and the Phillies won 2-0 on Friday night, handing San Diego its second straight shutout and third in five games.

The Phillies have thrown consecutive four-hitters against the Padres, who have gone 21 scoreless innings since Wednesday night’s win in a split doubleheader at Chicago. San Diego has been shut out a major league-leading six times in 20 games. It was Philadelphia’s major league-leading fifth shutout.

On Thursday night, Roy Oswalt and three relievers combined for a four-hit, 3-0 win.

“There’s no doubt we are struggling to score runs,” manager Bud Black said. “They know what’s going on. They are doing everything they can. We are in that period where we are not scoring. But I do know we are going to come out of it.

“When you look at the talent, we think certain guys are not going to stay at the level they are right now,” Black added.

Hamels (2-1), who went to San Diego’s Rancho Bernardo High, got all the support he needed when Ryan Howard hit a two-run triple off Clayton Richard (1-1) with two outs in the third.

Hamels struck out eight and walked three.

Ryan Madson pitched the ninth for his first save.

“We just have to find a way out,” San Diego’s Jorge Cantu said. “We have to do it now. We can’t afford to wait.

“I personally feel a little bit bad about it because they are pounding the zone, too, just like our opponents,” Cantu said of the Padres’ pitchers. “But we just can’t execute offensively. That’s got to turn around.”

Hamels also had two singles. His first came in the third, but he was caught off the bag for the first out, so he wasn’t on board when Howard hit his booming triple into the gap in right-center. Shane Victorino and Placido Polanco were on base after drawing consecutive walks and advancing on Clayton Richard’s wild pitch.

The Phillies have won nine straight and 13 of 14 at Petco Park since the 2008 season.

The Padres threatened in the second when Ryan Ludwick walked and Cameron Maybin doubled with one out. After Hamels struck out Will Venable, Alberto Gonzalez was intentionally walked before Richard lined out to shortstop Jimmy Rollins.

Richard allowed two runs and six hits in 7 1-3 innings, struck out four and walked four.

NOTES: Padres 3B Chase Headley didn’t start due to an illness but he entered during a double switch in the top of the eighth. … Padres OF Chris Denorfia was sidelined by a strained groin. … The four-game series continues Saturday night with Phillies RHP Joe Blanton scheduled to face RHP Tim Stauffer. RHP Roy Halladay is scheduled to start for the Phillies on Sunday while LHP Wade LeBlanc is expected to be recalled from Triple-A Tucson to start for the Padres.

SAN DIEGO (AP)—Cole Hamels(notes) said there was nothing special about holding his hometown San Diego Padres to four hits on Friday night.

Fans in two full sections at Petco Park thought otherwise, giving Hamels a standing ovation as he walked off the mound after the eighth inning in the Philadelphia Phillies’ 2-0 win over the punchless Padres.

“It’s just another place. Nicer weather,” said Hamels, the 2008 World Series MVP who went to San Diego’s Rancho Bernardo High School.

“I like pitching in any ballpark,” Hamels said. “Truly, I pitch well in small ballparks, big ballparks, good weather, bad weather. It’s just coming out and trying to get the team. It’s not necessarily how big the ballpark is, it’s who you’re facing. I’ve been able to do well against certain teams, and the Padres are on that list. Thank God Adrian left.”

That was a reference to three-time All-Star Adrian Gonzalez(notes), who was traded from San Diego to Boston in December.

The Phillies handed San Diego its second straight shutout and third in five games.

Hamels’ fine performance was the second straight by Philadelphia’s sensational staff against the weak-hitting Padres. On Thursday night, Roy Oswalt(notes) and three relievers combined for a four-hit, 3-0 win.

The Padres have gone 21 scoreless innings since Wednesday night’s win in a split doubleheader at Chicago. San Diego has been shut out a major league-leading six times in 20 games. It was Philadelphia’s major league-leading fifth shutout.

“No matter when you face them, you are going to be in for it,” San Diego manager Bud Black said. “You have to be on your game to score runs against these guys. Runs are hard to come by.”

After the Padres face Joe Blanton(notes) on Saturday night, they will go up against reigning NL Cy Young Award winner Roy Halladay(notes).

“It was fantastic,” manager Charlie Manuel said about Hamels’ performance. “It was really good.”

Hamels threw 126 pitches, one short of his career-high. Hamels retired Jorge Cantu(notes) for the final out of the eighth inning with a runner on first. Had Cantu reached base, Manuel would have lifted Hamels.

“Where he was at with the pitch count and everything like that, I definitely wasn’t going to let him lose the game,” Manuel said.

Hamels “was mixing all his pitches,” Cantu said. “He was pitching backward, right at you, one in, one out, you name it. He pitched a great game.”

Hamels (2-1) got all the support he needed when Ryan Howard(notes) hit a two-run triple off Clayton Richard(notes) (1-1) with two outs in the third.

Hamels struck out eight and walked three.

Ryan Madson(notes) pitched the ninth for his first save.

Hamels also had two singles. His first came in the third, but he was caught off the bag for the first out, so he wasn’t on board when Howard hit his booming triple into the gap in right-center. Shane Victorino(notes) and Placido Polanco(notes) were on base after drawing consecutive walks and advancing on Clayton Richard’s wild pitch.

“That didn’t turn out too well,” Richard said of the slider to Howard. “He put a good swing on an average pitch. I don’t think it was a terrible pitch but he did a good job with it.”

Richard said it was just as frustrating to walk the batters ahead of Howard.

“Great hitters like him, they’ll get their doubles, triples, their home runs,” he said. “It’s minimizing the damage before that.”

The Phillies have won nine straight and 13 of 14 at Petco Park since the 2008 season.

The Padres threatened in the second when Ryan Ludwick(notes) walked and Cameron Maybin(notes) doubled with one out. After Hamels struck out Will Venable(notes), Alberto Gonzalez(notes) was intentionally walked before Richard lined out to shortstop Jimmy Rollins(notes).

Richard allowed two runs and six hits in 7 1-3 innings, struck out four and walked four.

NOTES: Padres 3B Chase Headley(notes) didn’t start due to an illness but he entered during a double switch in the top of the eighth. … Padres OF Chris Denorfia(notes) was sidelined by a strained groin.