PHOENIX -- When he woke up on Wednesday morning, Luke Weaver had some nerves going that he hadn't experienced in 3 1/2 months. His appetite wasn't really there, but the D-backs right-hander knew he needed something in his system for the afternoon start against the Padres.

It was Weaver's first start since May 16, when he strained his right shoulder and had to go on the 60-day injured list.

"With the day game, you don't have the day to process and to kind of settle in for a good breakfast and whatnot," Weaver said. "So you kind of wake up with a little bit of anxiousness, and putting food in your system is a little tougher. You just do what you can and you make sure you manage your workload, and you're in your pregame routines and make sure you are ready to go."

As it turns out, it was his opponents who should have been nervous. Weaver was impressive over six innings to help lead the D-backs past the Padres, 8-3, on Wednesday afternoon at Chase Field. With the win, Arizona snatched the finale of the three-game series after San Diego won the first two contests.

• Box score

Weaver, who scattered four hits over six innings and did not walk a batter while allowing one run and striking out three, was still trying to settle in when Trent Grisham opened the game with a single. Weaver, though, was able to pick Grisham off first almost immediately, and then retired the next two hitters. Suddenly, he was in a groove.

"It just kind of reset me and kind of got me back into place, and then it's just back into attack mode," Weaver said. "So that was really vital to start off the game with doing that."

Weaver noticed the Padres were aggressive early in the count, so he used that to his advantage to get quick outs rather than focus on strikeouts.

That mindset allowed him to manage his pitch count efficiently. Despite being on a pitch limit of around 80, he was able to get through six innings on 79 pitches.

"It was a good all-around outing," Weaver said.

September may not feature a playoff chase for the D-backs, but there is a lot on the line for players like Weaver.

A strong September would go a long way towards him feeling confident in his health, as well as give him some momentum heading into next year. It could influence Arizona's decision of whether or not to offer him arbitration this offseason.

It will also provide Weaver with an opportunity to test out his new mechanics on the mound. In an attempt to get more consistency between pitching from the windup vs. out of the stretch, Weaver has gone to a windup that is very similar to his stretch delivery.

"I think a big thing when we get in the windup and the stretch, they can be very different," Weaver said. "And when you add a big leg kick in, it can really sway you a little bit. So I just tried to minimize the movement as much as possible, and just get into a really good position that I thought I could be really consistent at. And through all the rehab outings, I was able to command the ball really well with all my pitches."