PHOENIX _ Jered Weaver and the San Diego Padres had been able to stomach a spate of home runs this season. Most had come with no one on base. In each of Weaver's last three starts, his team had stood a chance while he stood on the mound.
In Thursday's 6-2 loss to the Arizona Diamondbacks, Weaver surrendered a pair of solo shots to Chris Owings, who celebrated the first multi-homer career of his game. That was not the extent of the damage.
Yasmany Tomas also homered, with a runner on base. He later doubled, with a runner on base.
The D-backs scored five of their runs with Weaver on the mound. The right-hander was lifted with two outs in the sixth. He'd allowed six hits, including three home runs.
In 28 2/3 innings, Weaver has given up 10 homers, two more than any other major league pitcher. Long, deep drives have been the 34-year-old's Achilles heel.
"It doesn't take a genius to figure that one out, that's for sure," Weaver said. "Obviously, long ball's been killing me, and any time you fall behind with the stuff I'm throwing up there, you have to be perfect. I just wasn't able to do that tonight.
"I was falling behind, location was terrible. It was just one of those days where I kind of battled against myself and it just didn't work out."
The Padres have lost all five games the veteran has started. On three occasions, he was not to blame, having limited the damage to two earned runs.
Thursday, the D-backs made loud contact on several swings while the Padres struggled to connect against Taijuan Walker, who tied a career high with 11 strikeouts. Weaver's struggles were reminiscent of much of his 2016 season. Last year, only James Shields yielded more home runs.
The Padres traded Shields in June. They signed Weaver in February. So far, the veteran has not assuaged concerns about league-low velocity. While allowing 37 home runs in 2016, he never permitted more than nine in a month.
So far, too, he has not been aided by much run support. The Padres struck in the top of the first Thursday, when Yangervis Solarte singled to drive in Wil Myers, who had doubled.
Ryan Schimpf, who emerged from an extended slump to hit the game-winning homer Wednesday, homered again in the top of the seventh.
Weaver's frustration was compounded in the sixth, when Solarte failed to stop a grounder from going into right field. Two batters later, Tomas doubled.
