PHOENIX -- Yu Darvish left a rocky start early with lower back tightness, and the Arizona Diamondbacks took advantage to beat the San Diego Padres 12-3 on Thursday night.

Darvish exited in the third inning. The right-hander didn't look comfortable on the mound and was pulled after throwing a ball in the dirt to Josh VanMeter.

Darvish (7-7) gave up five runs on six hits and a walk through 2⅔ innings. He struck out four and threw 74 pitches.

If he were to miss significant time, it would provide another obstacle for the Padres as they try to climb in the National League West standings. They're in third place, nine games behind the first-place San Francisco Giants and five back of the Los Angeles Dodgers. San Diego currently holds the second NL wild-card spot.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.