PHILADELPHIA _ Austin Hedges can, indeed, help the Padres win with his bat.
On his 27th birthday, starting for just the third time in 10 games, Hedges' seventh-inning home run provided the difference in a 3-2 victory over the Phillies on a sticky, stifling and slow Sunday afternoon at Citizens Bank Park.
With the lift from their new backup catcher, the Padres finally did not wilt in the heat, winning a road series for the first times in six tries since the All-Star break and taking the deciding game of a series for just the third time in 10 chances this season.
Joey Lucchesi threw a career-high 109 pitches in getting through six innings. Two-out walks and the doubles by Jean Segura that followed were Lucchesi's only blemishes, as he allowed just two other hits in completing his eighth quality start in 24 tries this season.
Craig Stammen and Matt Strahm combined for a scoreless seventh, and rookie Andres Munoz followed Saturday's perfect eighth inning with a perfect eighth Sunday.
Kirby Yates worked through a 13-pitch strikeout of Segura, an eight-pitch strikeout of Corey Dickerson and a relatively easy six-pitch strikeout of Scott Kingery to earn his 35th save, tying him with the Yankees' Aroldis Chapman for the major league lead.
That grinding finish was fitting on a day that began with two slow-working starters not at all helping pace of play or health on a humid day where the heat index hovered above 100 degrees until clouds mercifully covered the area in the final four innings. By that time, Phillies right fielder Bryce Harper left the game after five innings due to dehydration.
The Phillies took a 1-0 lead in the first inning when Lucchesi lost control for a bit.
With two out and an 0-2 count on Harper, Lucchesi threw three straight balls at the end of a seven-pitch walk to the Phillies' No. 3 hitter. Lucchesi then fell behind 2-0 to Segura before sailing a 2-1 pitch a good three feet over Hedges' head, allowing Harper to move to second. Segura lined the next pitch into center field to easily score Harper.
Successive singles by Luis Urias and Hedges put runners at first and second with one out in the second. But on Lucchesi's third failed bunt attempt, Phillies catcher J.T. Realmuto fired behind Urias, who was caught in a rundown for the third out.
Hunter Renfroe led off the fourth with his second walk of the game, and Hosmer was on his way to a walk when he swung at ball four on a 3-0 count, an 84 mph fastball well inside, before sending a lazy fly ball to center field on the next pitch. Ty France made the second out on a pop-up caught on top of the mound.
A home run by Urias, on a 2-2 fastball, sailed just over the tall right-field wall and gave the Padres a 2-1 lead.
Three pitches later, Hedges gave away another out to end the top of fourth.
After grounding a ball down the right field line, Hedges tried to hustle his second single of the day into a double but was thrown out by Harper.
Hedges' grounder down the right field line came on Jason Vargas' 22nd pitch of the inning and 71st pitch of the game.
Vargas retired the Padres in order on eight pitches in the fifth and got the first two outs of the sixth on three pitches before Hosmer reached down to line a 68 mph curveball into right-center field for what he successfully turned into a double.
That was the sixth of the Padres' sporadic hits off Vargas, and it drove the left-hander from the game.
Just as they had on July 23, in his second-to-last start before the Mets traded him, the Padres struggled to time Vargas' pitches, including a curveball that meandered toward the plate at about 66 mph and an average fastball that entering the game was the slowest among major league starting pitchers (at 84.3 mph). Vargas allowed only one hit that day.
The Phillies got back to even thanks to another two-out walk by Lucchesi and another double by Segura on a hanging churve.
Urias flew out on the first pitch of the seventh and Hedges fell behind 0-2 before turning on a a curveball near his knees and sending it into the left field seats.
Hedges, who entered the game with a .183 batting average and one hit in 17 at-bats this month, had said earlier this week he felt he should be in the lineup for the considerable gifts he brings on defense.
Francisco Mejia had taken over the primary starting duties, as the Padres desperately sought offense and the switch-hitter has hit .463/.488/.707 over his past 12 games.
By the time Hedges' bloop single fell in center field in the ninth inning and he had completed a career-best 4-for-4 day, his batting average was up to .197 for the season.
