SAN DIEGO — After dropping the first two in a four-game set with the Washington Nationals, the San Diego Padres bounced back in a big way.
Will Venable, Kyle Blanks and Yonder Alonso homered and drove in two runs apiece as the Padres hammered the Nationals 13-4 before an announced crowd of 27,080 at Petco Park on Sunday.
Andrew Cashner (3-2) got the victory, allowing three runs on seven hits with six strikeouts and a walk in 6 2/3 innings.
Dan Haren (4-5) had a rough outing, giving up seven runs on nine hits. Two of those nine were homers to Venable and Blanks.
“Way too many mistakes,” said Haren, who lost for the third consecutive time to the Padres and has just two wins in nine career starts at Petco. “I didn’t feel good out there. I didn’t have much. I kept it close for a while but you can’t keep leaving balls out over the plate to a professional lineup.”
The rout, coming on the heels of a 2-1 decision over ace Jordan Zimmermann and the Nationals on Saturday, allowed the Padres (20-23) to claim their 11th win in the last 14 games at Petco and earn a split in the four-game series with Washington. They banged out 15 hits to 10 for the Nationals.
“That was a big win last night and to come back today against Haren, who is a great competitor … was good for our guys,” Padres manager Bud Black said. “That’s where the big numbers come from, when you string together a lot of good (at-bats). We did that a number of times today. Everybody contributed. Big output today.”
The Padres jumped on Haren early, scoring three runs in the first. Carlos Quentin, in his first game back from paternity leave, doubled to left to score Everth Cabrera, Alonso lifted a sacrifice fly to deep right to drive in Chase Headley, and Jedd Gyorko’s RBI double to left scored Quentin with two outs.
Cashner got a scare in the fourth when Steve Lombardozzi lined a pitch back to the mound. However, Cashner was able to get his glove on the line drive and knock it down, resulting in an infield single.
“That’s one of the scariest balls I’ve had in my face for a while,” Cashner said. “I was able to get a little glove on it or it could have been a dangerous situation.”
Ryan Zimmerman followed with a homer on a 3-1 pitch from Cashner into the upper deck in left to cut the Padres’ lead to 3-2 with no outs in the fourth.
But the Padres answered with four runs in the fifth off Haren. Venable led off the inning with a solo shot to right. Three batters later, Gyorko singled home Alonso with two outs.
Blanks followed by drilling Haren’s first pitch into the second deck of the Western Metal Supply building in left for a two-run blast and a 7-2 advantage.
“High fastball and I was able to get down on it early, see it and put a good swing on it,” said Blanks, who went 1-for-3 with a walk.
The Nationals (23-21) scored two runs in the seventh on RBI singles by Zimmerman and Adam LaRoche, but that would be the closest they would get.
San Diego tacked on five runs in the bottom of the inning to blow the game open.
“We have not been very consistent,” Zimmerman said. “Part of that has been injuries, but you have to get past that. We just have to do a little bit more and collectively lift our games up.”
Alonso delivered a solo home run to right in the eighth. He and Venable lead the Padres with six apiece.
Cabrera, who drove in the game-winning run in Saturday’s win, went 2-for-5 with two RBIs. He also stole three bases.
NOTES: Outfielder Bryce Harper did not play for the second consecutive game because of a sore knee. Harper has been ailing since Monday when he crashed into the wall at Dodger Stadium. He played the first two games of the four-game set in San Diego but said at the start of it that the entire left side of his body was hurting. … SS Ian Desmond got the day off after starting all 43 of the previous games. Desmond is mired in an 0-for-17 slump. Danny Espinosa started at short … LHP reliever Zach Duke will start in place of injured RHP Ross Detwiler in Monday’s game at San Francisco. Detwiler is suffering back problems, though the club hasn’t placed him on the disabled list. … Toronto claimed RHP Thad Weber, who the Padres had designated for assignment Friday.