SAN DIEGO -- Brett Wallace's big night helped the Padres overcome a shaky start Tuesday, as San Diego scored six unanswered runs to rally for a 6-3 win and another series victory over the Rockies at Petco Park.
"Hitting's contagious," said Padres first baseman Wil Myers, who tied the game, 3-3, in the sixth with a double. "It was like we knew something was going to happen. We stayed in there, and we kept battling."
Charlie Blackmon led off the game with a homer, and Colorado would load the bases in the first inning before Padres starter Andrew Cashner had even recorded an out. But the hard-throwing right-hander escaped with minimal damage, and finished with six strikeouts while allowing three runs in six innings. Padres pitchers faced the minimum over the final seven frames, with Fernando Rodney working a perfect ninth for his second save in as many nights.
Rockies manager Walt Weiss said of Cashner's rebound, "We got a couple, could've gotten more, but Cashner knows how to work through traffic."
The San Diego offense didn't kick into gear until their were two outs in the fourth inning, when Matt Kemp and Wallace hit back-to-back homers against Rockies starter Eddie Butler -- the first two hits Butler allowed. Two innings later, Wallace doubled home the go-ahead run, as part of a three-run rally that saddled Butler with the loss. The 25-year-old righty allowed five runs on four hits in 5 2/3.
"I threw a lot of good pitches, but just three or four of them cost the team the game," Butler said.
The Padres, who will go for a sweep on Wednesday afternoon, have not lost a home series against the Rockies since July 2013 and have won 20 of the last 26 at Petco Park.

MOMENTS THAT MATTERED
Hope turns to sorrow: The Rockies built on Blackmon's leadoff homer by loading the bases with no outs before Cashner fanned Gerardo Parra on six pitches in the strike zone (four he fouled off). Mark Reynolds provided a productive out with a sacrifice fly to right, but after Nick Hundley's fielder's choice grounder, the two-run inning was more a disappointment than a sign of things to come.
"We made him throw 37 pitches in the first inning and ran his pitch count up," Blackmon said. "I don't know how he was able to stay in the game.
"That's not the best I've seen him, but that's probably the best I've seen someone come back after a rough first inning, in terms of pitch count, and still be able to throw six."

Back-to-back jacks: The consecutive homers from Kemp and Wallace marked the second time the Padres have hit back-to-back dingers this season -- with Derek Norris and Adam Rosales doing the honors on April 19 against the Pirates. Kemp and Wallace finished with two hits apiece.
"You see Matty go up there and really change the course of that game with that swing, being aggressive," Wallace said. "That just shows the toughness in our whole clubhouse and in our team." More >

Couldn't find the escape hatch: Butler could have stayed off the hook for a loss. With two down in the sixth, the game was tied at 3-3 and Butler had a 1-2 count against Wallace. But he hung a slider in the middle of the plate, and Wallace drove it the opposite way to left for a game-tying RBI double. It was the last of the four hits Butler allowed -- all for extra bases. Five of his six baserunners became earned runs. More >

Quick Cash: Cashner threw 57 pitches in the first two innings while laboring extensively. But he found a groove after Nolan Arenado led off the third with a single, facing the minimum while blanking the Rockies for the rest of his six innings -- in stark contrast to his 89-pitch, 2 2/3-inning outing in San Francisco last week. More >

AFTER FURTHER REVIEW
Padres skipper Andy Green challenged Parra's stolen base in the top of the third. Parra was initially ruled safe at second, but the call was overturned after replays showed that he slid past the bag while second baseman Jemile Weeks kept the tag on him.

QUOTABLE
"He's the best player I've ever played with. Not taking anything away from Evan [Longoria], who I played with in Tampa, but this guy's unreal, man. He knows how to hit. I've learned a lot from him, and hopefully I can continue to learn from him." -- Myers, on Kemp
"Cash was feeling things out to start the game, and we had a lot of really good at-bats to take advantage of that. Once he settled in, he was attacking with his fastball and looked like he was throwing it as hard as he could, and it had some good movement." -- Rockies second baseman DJ LeMahieu, on Cashner
SOUND SMART WITH YOUR FRIENDS
Kemp's 40 career home runs against the Rockies are third-most by any player against them all time, behind Barry Bonds (54) and Sammy Sosa (45). With eight homers on the season, Kemp has as many dingers through 27 games as he did in the entire first half last year.
WHAT'S NEXT
Rockies: Right-hander Tyler Chatwood (3-2, 2.73 ERA), who has held opponents scoreless in two of his last three starts, will take the mound for the series finale with the Padres at Petco Park on Wednesday at 1:40 p.m. MT.
Padres: Right-hander Cesar Vargas (0-0, 0.87 ERA) looks to build on a fantastic start, as he became only the second Padres pitcher to begin his career with consecutive outings of at least five innings while allowing one run or fewer. He faces the Rockies at 12:40 p.m. PT on Wednesday. It remains unclear whether Vargas will be on a pitch count, as he was on Friday in L.A.
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