Gonzalez's 3-run homer leads Dodgers to 11-8 win over Padres

SAN DIEGO -- Petco Park played like a bandbox with the wind blowing out Saturday night, and Adrian Gonzalez and the Los Angeles Dodgers capitalized.

Gonzalez hit his sixth home run against San Diego this year, a three-run shot, and Andre Ethier, Howie Kendrick and Juan Uribe each had a two-run drive to give the Dodgers an 11-8 victory over the Padres.

"The universe was a little off track there for the first inning and a half," Dodgers manager Don Mattingly said. "And then it kind of got whacked out again."

The Dodgers got a scare when starter Brandon McCarthy came out with tightness in his right elbow after allowing a three-run homer to Justin Upton in the sixth. Upton also hit a two-run shot in the first.

McCarthy said he'd been working through the tightness for the last week and it flared up in the second inning.

"I kept getting quick outs so it was kind of making it hard. It was hurting but you're getting the outs so let's keep going and save the bullpen. Unfortunately, it cost us a bunch of runs," he said.

McCarthy is scheduled to have an MRI exam Monday.

"I think he's experienced enough to know that if he thought it was something really bad he would have shut himself down earlier," Mattingly said. "He just felt like he could keep going and all of a sudden he couldn't."

Gonzalez leads the NL with seven homers and 18 RBIs.

The NL West-leading Dodgers had scored nine runs combined in their previous four games. They've won four of five against the new-look Padres.

Wil Myers hit his first career leadoff homer for San Diego.

The teams combined to hit seven homers, five doubles and one triple on a chilly, windy and damp night at Petco Park.

Gonzalez played with the Padres from 2006 until being traded to Boston after the 2010 season. He hit five homers against them in a season-opening, three-game series at Dodger Stadium, including three off Andrew Cashner on April 8.

The slugger's drive landed in the home run porch in the right-field corner to give the Dodgers a 6-3 lead with two outs in the second.

Gonzalez is 13 for 22 (.591) with 10 RBIs in five games against San Diego this season. In his last 11 games against the Padres, he's 22 for 49 (.449) with eight homers and 13 RBIs.

Ethier homered deep into the seats down the right-field line in the first, his second, and Kendrick hit an impressive shot to straightaway center, his third, to chase Ian Kennedy in the fifth. Uribe hit an opposite-field shot into the right-field porch off rookie Chris Rearick with two outs in the fifth. It was his first and it gave the Dodgers a 10-3 lead.

"We were able to get some balls to fall today," Kendrick said. "The ones out of the yard, you can't predict that stuff. You just put the bat on it. You get the ball flying like that out of here in a park that's normally not a home run-type park. It was just an uncharacteristic day for this park, but we'll take it."

The Padres pulled to 10-7 in the sixth. Upton hit a three-run homer into the sandy play area beyond the fence in right-center to chase McCarthy. Sergio Santos came on and allowed Yonder Alonso's triple and Derek Norris' RBI groundout.

Upton hit a two-run homer in the first, an opposite-field shot that just went over a leaping Ethier and landed on top of the right-field wall. It tied the game at 3.

"I've never seen the ball flying out of here like it was tonight," Upton said. "The ball was carrying to right-center and to right field, so like you saw there was an elevated number of runs."

McCarthy (3-0) allowed six runs and six hits in five-plus innings, struck out four and walked one. He had retired 12 straight batters before allowing three straight hits to open the sixth, including Upton's three-run homer.

Kennedy (0-1) was activated from the 15-day disabled list earlier Saturday. He strained his left hamstring against San Francisco during the home opener on April 9. He allowed eight hits and eight runs in 4 1/3 innings, struck out two and walked one.

San Diego has lost four straight overall, including two to the Dodgers. This is the Padres' first series loss at home since the All-Star break last year. They had been 11-0-1 since then in series at Petco Park.

San Diego's Matt Kemp was ejected for arguing with umpire Marty Foster after taking a called third strike to end the seventh.

TRAINER'S ROOM

Dodgers: RF Yasiel Puig missed the game with a strained left hamstring, and Mattingly said Puig could be a candidate for the disabled list. Ethier started in his place.

UP NEXT

Dodgers: RHP Scott Baker is being summoned from Triple-A Oklahoma City to start Sunday's series finale.

Padres: RHP Brandon Morrow (0-0, 3.15 ERA) is scheduled to make his fourth start for the Padres.