It was a far cry from the seven-start stretch July 2 through Aug. 1, when Jimenez went 6-1 with a 1.49 ERA. During that run, manager Clint Hurdle summed it up when he said, "He's growing up right before your eyes."

Inevitably there was a dip, but until Saturday at San Diego, much of August, Hurdle said, had been about "learning how to go out and compete without his best stuff, improvising on the mound ... staying away from the big inning or making the one big mistake with a lot of guys on base."

Jimenez, a power pitcher with a four-pitch mix, didn't come close to that against the Padres. Jimenez's walks, which were greatly reduced during his hot streak, have risen, and pitching coach Bob Apodaca said, "Right now, I think he's fallen back into a pattern he was doing early in the year. He's not as aggressive in the strike zone with his fastball."

Indeed, fastball command is what Hurdle said he hopes to see from Jimenez in the final month of the season. He could make as many as five starts, giving Jimenez ample chance to revisit his mid-summer heights or to continue to struggle as he did in his last start.

"I hope to see a guy stay within his skill set," Hurdle said. "I hope to see a pitcher who knows his staple is his fastball command first and foremost, and everything spins off that. He got away from his fastball early (against San Diego), felt he had a good breaking ball, kept throwing a breaking ball and then when he went to get a fastball, he overreached for it."