Tatis homers to back Darvish, Padres hold off Mets 4-3

SAN DIEGO — Fernando Tatis Jr. returned to the lineup with a two-run homer that slipped out of center fielder Mason Williams’ glove, and the San Diego Padres held off the New York Mets 4-3 on Thursday night.

Yu Darvish (6-1) pitched effectively into the sixth inning and helped himself with two hits. Mark Melancon escaped a ninth-inning jam when Kevin Pillar grounded sharply into a game-ending double play.

Tatis also dashed home aggressively to score on a wild pitch as the Padres ended a four-game skid in the opener of a homestand against two first-place teams.

James McCann hit a two-run homer for the Mets, and Billy McKinney had an RBI triple off the wall in the eighth that nearly tied it as New York fought back from a 4-0 deficit.


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