SAN DIEGO -- No matter what he does over the next 10 days, William Myers' 2018 season is going to be remembered as a tumultuous one.
He spent 73 games on the disabled list with an assortment of injuries, and earlier this month he found himself entangled in controversy (of his own doing). At the plate, he's been OK, but he never hit his stride. He's also struggled with a midseason transition to third base.
And yet, there are still moments like Wednesday night, when Myers offers a reminder of what he's capable. In the Padres' 8-4 victory over the Giants at Petco Park, Myers crushed a long two-run homer into the home bullpen, putting San Diego on top for good.
"It was nice just to do something in a bigger situation, which I haven't done a lot of in recent weeks," Myers said.

"He's had those stops and starts," said Padres manager Andy Green. "Most of it's been injuries, just having a hard time finding that consistent rhythm. ... It's probably not the type of offensive year he was looking for. But he's still done some very nice things. I think that was evident tonight."
The home run was Myers' 11th of the season, and he's the first to point out that that number needs to be higher for a guy who expects to anchor the middle of a lineup.
He averaged 29 homers over the past two years. But even in those seasons, Myers went through prolonged struggles. Since joining the Padres in December 2014, it's felt as though Myers has left something on the table all four years.
"I'm obviously talented, but have not put together a whole season to my capability yet," Myers said. "That's what I want to do. I'm going to try to take those steps this offseason. I'm going to really work to truly put a full season together."
Meanwhile, Padres left-hander Robbie Erlin was mostly sharp over five innings Wednesday night. He faltered only once, in the top of the second inning, when he allowed a three-run double to Chris Stratton, the opposing pitcher.

The San Diego offense responded in no time. The first four batters in the bottom of the frame all managed to reach base after falling into a two-strike hole. Manuel Margot added a two-strike sacrifice fly. And after Erlin's sacrifice bunt, Myers went deep on a 3-2 slider from Stratton.
"Those successive two-strike at-bats leading until Wil hit his home run, that was as good a stretch as we had all year," Green said.

The score remained 5-3 until the eighth, when the Giants clawed one back on Aramis Garcia's solo home run. But Freddy Galvis responded with a three-run blast in the bottom of the frame, putting the game out of reach.
GALVIS IN A GROOVE
Barring injury, Galvis will be the only player in the Majors to play all 162 games in consecutive seasons. Somehow, he's putting together arguably his best offensive stretch in late September.
The switch-hitting Galvis went 4-for-5 on Tuesday night, and he knocked in four runs with a pair of hits on Wednesday. He's 10-for-20 with five extra-base hits during his current five-game hitting streak, and his homer came on a 99 mph fastball from right-hander Ray Black.

"That's a lot of velo he turned around right there," Green said.
Galvis' glove is excellent, but he isn't particularly pleased with his overall offensive performance this season. He's batting .240/.293/.368 -- all below his marks from 2017.
"Offensively, this is not where I want to be," Galvis said. "For sure I want to produce more. I want to help the team more. But you can't complain. I have to keep working, try to do my best and finish strong, go to the offseason and try to get better."
YOU GOTTA SEE THIS
The Padres partnered with Make-A-Wish San Diego to give 5-year-old Levi Smith the experience of a lifetime on Wednesday evening. Smith -- an ardent Padres fan born with a congenital heart condition -- signed a one-day contract with the club and spent the day hanging around his favorite players.
When the Padres took the field before the game, so did Smith. For pregame warmups, Smith fielded the first ground ball thrown from Eric Hosmer. The kid's got a pretty good arm.

UP NEXT
After an off-day Thursday, the Padres open a three-game series with the Dodgers in Los Angeles beginning Friday at 7:10 p.m. PT. The Padres tweaked their rotation so they'd have three rookies pitching at Dodger Stadium this weekend, giving them exposure to a pennant-race environment. On Friday night, Eric Lauer takes the hill opposite fellow left-hander Rich Hill.