SAN DIEGO -- Jake Peavy was hobbling down the baseline after he laid down a picture-perfect bunt that keyed a four-run rally in the fifth inning. And as he made his way off the field after his seventh and final inning, Peavy hobbled down the dugout steps as he received congratulations from his teammates.

No matter what ailed him on Monday night, whether it was remnants of an upper viral respiratory infection that slowed him last week or an ankle issue that has been lingering for several starts, Peavy wasn't bailing on the Padres after Sunday's 18-inning loss.

Backed by an offense that warmed up in the middle innings, Peavy got the Padres back in the win column with a 6-3 victory over Arizona in front 17,501 at Petco Park. It was the second time in a row that Peavy (6-6) delivered on the day after his team played 16 or more innings following a complete-game victory over Cincinnati on May 17.

"I want to be out there for these guys as teammates, you know, battling, getting in that wild-card race, and hopefully making a run at the Dodgers," said Peavy, who allowed two earned runs on seven hits while striking out eight batters. "I knew I had to get at least seven innings out of it."

Peavy's previous start, last Tuesday against Philadelphia, lasted 33 pitches as he battled flu-like symptoms. It was the shortest outing of Peavy's career as he allowed four runs in one inning pitched.

With his ace's strength affected by the illness, manager Bud Black determined Peavy needed an additional day of rest to get back on track. Black also noted that Peavy's ankle issue, which surfaced when during a May 22 start when he ran the bases, might not be fully healed.

After falling behind 2-0 against Arizona, Peavy confirmed the ankle was still bothering him after he bunted Henry Blanco and Josh Wilson over by limping as he reached first base.

"I'd be lying if I told you it's 100 percent but it's one of those nagging injuries you get through," Peavy said.

Peavy pitched on, getting six more outs to help out a bullpen that was so overused that the Padres brought in three additional pitchers before the game.

He breezed through the Diamondbacks' lineup in the first, third and fifth innings as he retired the side in order. But other than that, Peavy found himself in trouble often against what he described as Arizona's "scrappy lineup." He allowed two runs in the fourth inning on three singles and another in the sixth but got out of both jams with strikeouts.

"It was manageable," Black said. "He was hobbling a little more than we'd seen earlier. … But he's tolerating it and it was not affecting his ability to make pitches."

Early on, the Padres' offense didn't appear as if it could produce the big hit against Arizona starting pitcher Jon Garland (4-6). Garland -- who pitched seven shutout innings of three-hit ball here on May 6 -- kept current the opposition's practice of pitching around Adrian Gonzalez in the first inning, as he unintentionally walked the slugger to load the bases for Kevin Kouzmanoff and Chase Headley. Garland then won the first round, inducing a shallow fly to right off Kouzmanoff's bat and retiring Chase Headley on a line drive to escape without a run allowed.

Three innings later, Garland won round two when Kouzmanoff grounded into a double play after Gonzalez singled.

But trailing 2-0 in the fifth, Kouzmanoff and the Padres finally came through.

Tony Gwynn Jr. cut Arizona's lead in half with an RBI single and David Eckstein followed with a sacrifice fly to tie the game. Garland then hit Brian Giles with a pitch and walked Gonzalez -- one of three passes for the first baseman, who leads the majors with 47 walks. Swinging at the first pitch, Kouzmanoff lined a single to right-center to give the Padres a 4-2 lead.

Two innings later, after Gonzalez was walked intentionally, his 20th walk in the past 10 games, Kouzmanoff doubled to left-center to drive in two more runs.

"It's tough to erase the early at-bats," Kouzmanoff said. "When you don't get the job done, it's tough to deal with. It's frustrating. But it's important to have a short-term memory."