Rusty Despaigne can't contain Giants

SAN DIEGO -- The seemingly magical spell that Odrisamer Despaigne had over the Giants for the last 13 months wore off Tuesday night at Petco Park.

And when it did, the results were pretty unsightly for the Padres' starting pitcher, as the Giants hung a 9-3 loss on San Diego.

"Didn't seem like he was focused from Jump Street," Padres interim manager Pat Murphy said. "Even in the first inning, it didn't seem like he was hitting spots. In the second, got on it a little bit, looked better in the third, then fourth inning breakdown, was a little better in the fifth. I was disappointed that he didn't have better command."

Despaigne, the Cuban defector who made his big league debut against the Giants last June, entered Tuesday's game with a 0.91 ERA in 29 2/3 innings against San Francisco. When asked about his success so far against the Giants, Despaigne hinted that not pitching in such a long time may have been a factor in his rough outing Tuesday.

"You know, I think they were hitting the ball hard; at the same time, some of the balls they hit, I had two strikes on them," Despaigne said through an interpreter. "And for me it's been 11 days since I threw, 17 days since I started. So I think that is one of the differences today. I think it kind of takes you out of your rhythm a little bit."

Video: SF@SD: Crawford breaks it open with a three-run jack

But the Giants, who have looked flummoxed against Despaigne and his wide range of pitches and arm angles in the past, appeared locked in early. Despaigne pitched five innings, allowing seven hits and six runs (all earned), while walking two batters and striking out one.

"I felt good. But on the other side, you know, you have some good hitters that were attacking the zone," Despaigne said. "They are good hitters on their side. They put the ball in contact and things went their way."

Hunter Pence hit a home run in the second inning and Brandon Crawford, who had three hits, added a three-run home run in the fourth inning. Crawford's homer came off Despaigne's 70 mph curveball on an 0-2 count.

"Ideally I would have wanted it in the dirt. But I left it up and he hit it," Despaigne said.

Tuesday's loss snapped the Padres' season-high five-game winning streak. They face the Giants on Wednesday in the finale of a three-game series at Petco Park.