Canyon del Oro High School graduate Scott Hairston, seen here hitting a game-winning homer in the 10th inning against the Giants on Aug. 3, is 8 for 20 with three home runs since joining the Padres in late July.

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PHOENIX — Scott Hairston has noticed a slight — but important — difference between his new team, the San Diego Padres, and his former club, the Arizona Diamondbacks.

"Obviously, there's more experience here. I think this clubhouse is a little bit more loose than it was over at Arizona," he said during the teams' series this week at Chase Field.

"I don't know what it is. But I think everybody here really has a lot of fun. We had fun in Arizona. Don't get me wrong. My friends are over there, and we had fun. I've only been here a month and a half. I just really enjoy being around these guys. Hopefully we can put together a great month and win our division."

Hairston, nevertheless, isn't surprised by the D-backs' success. Despite hitting just .247 this season, Arizona leads San Diego by a game in the NL West.

"They have a really good ballclub. Everybody was talking about how inexperienced they are, but sometimes talent can take you a long way," he said.

The Padres acquired Hairston, a Canyon del Oro High School graduate and former Tucson Sidewinder, on July 27 in the first ever trade between the teams for Triple-A pitcher Leo Rosales, who has yet to pitch for the D-backs' organization because of a broken hand. Hairston is 8 for 20 (.400) with three home runs in 11 games for the Padres, but has been out since Aug. 9 with an oblique strain.

"Things were great. Things are still going really good," the outfielder said. "I'm happy to be here and be part of this team. They're a great group of guys."

He sustained the injury hitting a single in the gap against St. Louis. He felt a pop and a burning sensation in his left side after the swing. As he ran and tried to stretch the single into a double, he felt the rectus muscle in his side pull. Later that day, it was painful for him to exhale.

Hairston said he suffered two injuries, to the rectus and oblique muscles.

"I took some tissue off my rib cage," he said. "It actually tore some muscle. So that's pretty serious. It's the type of injury that takes time to heal, especially swinging a bat. There's a lot of force that goes into your core, so I've got to make sure I'm ready when I start playing. I don't want to come back too soon and re-injure myself."

Padres manager Bud Black said the club is hoping Hairston might be available this weekend. He has been taking batting practice.

"I thought I'd be playing by now, but the only thing I can control is doing my treatment and getting myself in the best shape possible," Hairston said.

Hairston, who was batting .222 for Arizona at the time of the trade but hit .322 in the minors, provides San Diego with more outfield depth and a right-handed bat with power.

"He can run a little bit," Black said. "Plays a good outfield. He's a guy who had some very good minor-league seasons that given the opportunity to get some at-bats and play more regularly is a good player. He filled a void we were a little bit short of."

Hairston is likely to get more of an opportunity with San Diego as two of its outfield starters are expected to file for free agency at the end of the year. The D-backs have plenty of outfielders, with left fielder Eric Byrnes signing a three-year deal, 24-year-old Chris Young in center and a young trio of players in right in Justin Upton (20), Jeff Salazar (26) and Carlos Quentin (25).

"In the long run, this will be the better opportunity for me," Hairston said.