Giants avoid no-hitter but not another loss at San Diego

SAN DIEGO - Johnny Cueto is ready to get out of San Diego.

After starting and losing the All-Star Game on Tuesday night, Cueto lost again at Petco Park on Sunday. He again allowed two home runs at the spacious park while his San Francisco Giants lost 5-3 to the San Diego Padres.

Edwin Jackson held San Francisco hitless until Conor Gillaspie’s three-run homer with one out in the seventh inning, and the Padres got their first sweep of the season.

Jackson, making his first start since 2014, and three relievers combined on a two-hitter against the Giants, who despite losing three consecutive games still have the best record in the majors at 57-36.

Cueto (13-2) lost for the first time since April 21 against Arizona. He had three consecutive complete-game victories against the Padres this season coming into Sunday.

Cueto allowed home runs to Kansas City’s Eric Hosmer and Salvador Perez in the second inning of the All-Star Game, which the American League won 4-2.

On Sunday, Cueto allowed a solo homer by Matt Kemp to left-center leading off the fourth and a solo homer by Christian Bethancourt into the first row in the second deck in left with two outs for a 2-0 San Diego lead. It was Kemp’s 18th and Bethancourt’s fifth.

“I mean, that’s exactly what happened. You leave the pitches up, you’re going to pay the price,” Cueto said through a translator. “That’s what you have to work on. You have to make your pitches. But then again, you’re not a robot. You eventually will make mistakes and you have to get through them.”

Cueto made it into the sixth, allowing a leadoff walk to Alex Dickerson and a single to Bethancourt before making way for George Kontos. Rookie Ryan Schimpf hit an RBI single and Jackson followed two batters later with an RBI hit.

Cueto allowed four runs and six hits in five-plus innings, struck out four and walked three.

He was bothered by a virus in both appearances.

He said he woke up Sunday with a pain in his left side, but was able to work through it.

“He wasn’t full strength,” manager Bruce Bochy said. “You look at the fourth and fifth and he threw fifty something pitches, and I’m sure that took something out of him. He battled, despite not being full strength.

“The bats were quiet early,” Bochy added. “We had some missed opportunities there. Just a productive out and we’d get a run. It was a rough series. We’ve got to reboot, reset here.”

San Diego remains the only big league team without a no-hitter, having played 7,582 games without one since starting out in 1969.

After striking out Brandon Crawford to open the seventh, Jackson bobbled Gregor Blanco’s grounder for an error and then walked Ramiro Pena before Gillaspie homered deep into the seats in right field. That cut the Padres’ lead to 4-3.

Jackson (1-1) walked five, struck out four and threw 90 pitches. Until the homer, the Giants hadn’t come close to a hit as Jackson kept them off-balance, mostly with his slider.

Jackson, 32, pitched a no-hitter in 2010 for Arizona, walking eight and throwing 149 pitches to stop Tampa Bay. He was signed to a minor league deal by the Padres on June 20 after being cut by Miami.

He was promoted from Triple-A earlier Sunday to start in place of All-Star Drew Pomeranz, who was traded to Boston on Thursday. San Diego is his 11th big league club.

“It’s great to be here,” said Jackson, who’s with his 11th big league team. “Somewhat of an interesting day to say the least. … It was definitely a good way to have everything kicked off with a new team.

“I’ve been through a lot of ups and a lot of downs. I believe in what I can do. I’ve always believed in what I can do. It’s just a matter of going out and proving it once you get in between the lines.”

Jackson hit two singles and drove in a run. He also reached on a fielding error by Crawford.

Brandon Maurer pitched the ninth for his third save.

San Diego’s Yangervis Solarte homered in the seventh, his ninth.

NOTES

Bochy said Giants outfielder Hunter Pence, on the disabled list with a strained right hamstring, took Sunday off during his rehab assignment after getting hit by a pitch on Saturday. “We’re just being cautious here,” Bochy said.

Jake Peavy, the Giants’ scheduled starting pitcher Tuesday in Boston, started three postseason games for the Red Sox during their 2013 run to the World Series title.

Although the San Diego Padres have never had a no-hitter, the club has thrown 28 one-hitters in its history. Randy Jones, Bruce Hurst and Andrew Cashner are the only Padres starters to throw two one-hitters.