PHOENIX -- Arizona provided the Padres with a how-to manual for clutch hitting situations on Friday night, complete with a hands-on demonstration.

Behind an offense that rapped out 15 hits, including 11 with two outs, the Diamondbacks sent the Padres to an 8-3 defeat in their second-half opener in front of 30,981 at Chase Field. The loss moved the Padres back into a first-place tie with the Los Angeles Dodgers, who defeated San Francisco 9-1.

It was also the Padres' fourth loss to Arizona in six games this season.

"They swung the bats well with runners in scoring position a couple of times," Padres manager Bud Black said. "When you get (two-out hits) they're great, but when you give 'em up they're not good."

The Diamondbacks' final outburst was deadly to the Padres' comeback hopes.

Shortly after Jose Cruz Jr.'s fourth career pinch-hit home run -- the team's first of the season -- cut Arizona's lead to 4-3, the Diamondbacks erupted one last time.

Conor Jackson reached on a one-out walk against Royce Ring and, after Stephen Drew was retired, Jeff Salazar doubled.

Cla Meredith, who had allowed only two of 16 inherited runners to score all season, equaled that total when Chris Snyder hit a two-run single and advanced on Brian Giles' throwing error. Tony Clark then added an RBI single to make it 7-3.

But the two-out hit parade began in the first inning against Padres starter Greg Maddux (7-7), who continues to struggle at Chase Field. The loss was Maddux's 10th in 11 career decisions against Arizona in 16 starts.

Of the 18 major league parks in which Maddux has thrown 50 or more innings, he only has a higher ERA at Coors Field (5.86) compared with his 5.67 mark in this airplane hangar.

Friday was no different.

After Maddux retired Chris Young and Orlando Hudson, he gave up a single to Eric Byrnes, doubles to Chad Tracy and Jackson and singles to Drew and Salazar to make it 3-0.

Three innings later, Maddux found trouble with two outs when Young, Hudson and Byrnes had three straight singles to make it 4-1. The right-hander exited with nine hits allowed over four innings, giving him 75 hits yielded in 54 career innings at Chase, where he's now 0-6 in his career.

"I didn't get away with any mistakes," Maddux said. "I have had problems (with slick balls) in the past but not tonight. I'd love to have an excuse, but sometimes you've gotta look in the mirror."

Following his three-hit performance, including a pair of doubles, Salazar should have no trouble performing that act this morning.

But the Diamondbacks' right fielder, who was recalled from Triple-A Tucson on July 6, had an even bigger impact with his glove in the fifth inning. One out after Kevin Kouzmanoff homered off Arizona's Doug Davis (6-10) to make it 4-2, Giles looked like he made it a one-run game with a drive to right. But Salazar tracked the ball, scaled the chain-link fence and went two feet over the wall to take the homer away.

"That was a great play, no doubt," Black said. "We were creeping our way back."

Said Giles: "I hit it on the end (of the bat) and the guy made a great catch. … We could never put a stop to them. They kept adding on and we weren't in position to make a big charge."

Kouzmanoff put a charge into several pitches and wound up a single shy of the cycle. He is the 301st Padres player to be one hit away from the feat, but only the seventh who needed a single.

But the rookie third baseman was stranded at third after tripling with one out in the second inning as Maddux hit a one-hopper to a drawn-in Orlando Hudson and Giles followed with a groundout to first base.

"(Davis) made a pitch when he had to and I didn't," Maddux said.

Contact staff writer Dan Hayes at dhayes@nctimes.com.