Myers, Venable power Padres past D-backs
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Phoenix, AZ (SportsNetwork.com) - Wil Myers went 4-for-5 with a home run to help the San Diego Padres in a 6-5 victory over the Arizona Diamondbacks on Friday night.
Will Venable homered, tripled and knocked in two runs, the last of which proved to be the game-winner for San Diego, which had lost three of four.
James Shields (4-0) struggled but picked up the win after giving up five runs on six hits over six innings with seven strikeouts.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"His style is to pitch aggressive and attack," said Padres manager Bud Black. "He doesn't back down, he doesn't scare off."
Enrique Burgos (0-1) took the loss for Arizona for his relief of starter Jeremy Hellickson, who allowed five runs on eight hits in 4 2/3 frames.
"He just didn't throw enough strikes early in the count," D-backs manager Chip Hale said of Hellickson. "I thought we battled back well."
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Paul Goldscmidt homered for a third straight game and Chris Owings drove in two runs for the D-backs, who had their three-game winning streak snapped.
Chris Owings, A.J. Pollock and David Peralta also homered in the setback.
Venable homered in the second to open the scoring, but Owings' two-run shot in the home half gave Arizona a 2-1 edge.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Corey Spangenberg walked with two outs in the third, stole second and scored on Matt Kemp's single to center. Venable tripled with one away in the fourth and scored on a fielder's choice for a 3-2 San Diego lead.
Myers poked his fifth homer of the season to begin the fifth. Spangenberg followed Myers with a triple and scored on Justin Upton's fielder's choice as the Padres extended the lead to 5-2.
Pollock got a run back in the fifth with his second homer of the season.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Goldschmidt and Peralta went back-to-back to start the sixth to tie the game at 5-5. Shields continued to struggle with consecutive walks to the next two batters, but he got the next three to go down to keep the score tied up.
Venable provided a clutch, two-out single off Burgos in the seventh to help the Padres regain the lead at 6-5.
Joaquin Benoit pitched a scoreless eighth to set up Craig Kimbrel, who nailed down his ninth save of the season for a 1-2-3 ninth.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Game Notes
Myers became the second Padres first baseman to hit a home run out of the leadoff spot, joining Gene Richards who did so on May 7, 1978 ... Spangenberg walked four times in the win.