SAN DIEGO — Pinch hitter Matt Szczur’s home run couldn’t have come at a better time for Jhoulys Chacin and the San Diego Padres.
Szczur hit a go-ahead home run in the seventh inning while batting for Chacin and the Padres beat the Kansas City Royals 6-3 on Friday night to snap a five-game losing streak.
Chacin (5-5), who improved to 3-1 this season at Petco Park, had given up a game-tying, two-run homer to Salvador Perez in the fifth.
“It was definitely awesome,” Szczur said. “He’s been pitching really great lately, especially at home. He made probably one mistake tonight, and Salvador took advantage of it.