Once again, the Padres gave up more homers than they hit. I’m getting sick and tired of this. So seems the attitude of many a fan. Honestly, if the Pads keep winning, I couldn’t care less how many home runs they hit.

Last night was about cashing in runners on base and a nice performance from Ismael Valdez. Yeah, he ended up surrendering five runs, but he actually pitched a good game. He coughed up a couple of early homers (I called Larry Walker’s the moment Valdez fell behind, 2-0) and then tired in the sixth. But in between, he was pretty darned effective.

And how about Valdez at the plate? Two singles, a double, and a sacrifice? None of those hits was cheap, either, although if Preston Wilson hadn’t been playing so shallow he could’ve caught the double. Then again, how often does Valdez hit a ball to the warning track in center?

But as great as the news was on the field, it was arguably even better off it. Check this:

• Phil Nevin, on the DL since July 5, is due to return Wednesday in San Francisco.
• Ramon Hernandez, on the DL since June 20, has begun a rehab assignment at Portland and should be back within the next week or so.
• The Padres acquired Rich Aurilia for next to nothing. Two quotes we like to see:
  • “No one should read into this that Khalil Greene is not our starting shortstop,” general manager Kevin Towers said. “It will be great to give Khalil a day off. (Aurilia) can play second; he can play short. He’s a good bat off the bench.”
  • The Padres are expected to send a low-level prospect to Seattle to finish the deal on Tuesday when they shuffle the roster to make room for Aurilia.

  Works for me. The only downside I see is that the word is Darren Bragg and Xavier Nady will be odd men out. Losing Bragg is a disappointment in that it means Terrence Long will remain with the club. Other than getting paid, I’m not sure there’s anything Long does better than Bragg. As for Nady, the Pads really need to make a decision on him. The guy gets a couple of spot starts and pastes the ball. Then he sits for long stretches in favor of Long. I don’t know how Nady feels, but I find it pretty irritating that Long gets so much PT with Nady available. Long is a decent fourth outfielder, but Nady has the potential to be a solid middle-of-the-order bat. It’s a shame he didn’t get more of a look while Nevin was on the shelf.

That’ll do for now. Same two teams tonight: Adam Eaton vs Jason Jennings. Chicks dig the long ball, Padre fans dig wins. Go do it.