SAN FRANCISCO - For the second time in his career, San Francisco Giants left-hander Madison Bumgarner took a perfect game into the eighth inning Saturday night.

And for the second time, he didn't get through the inning with it.

But also for the second time, he insisted he didn't care.

In Bumgarner's world, it's all about winning.

The reigning World Series Most Valuable Player retired the first 23 San Diego Padres he faced before settling for a one-hit shutout, delivering the Giants an 8-0 victory.

"I'm not here to throw perfect games or no-hitters," Bumgarner assured after the third one-hit shutout of his career. "They're special. But nothing is going to get in the way of winning the game."

Center fielder Angel Pagan and first baseman Brandon Belt smacked solo home runs, and right fielder Marlon Byrd drove in three runs with three hits, helping the Giants (74-68) keep pace with the first-place Los Angeles Dodgers (81-60) atop the National League West.

The Dodgers lead the Giants by 7 1/2 games with 20 games remaining.

The home run for Belt, which capped the scoring in the seventh inning, was his 18th of the season, a career high. But there's no doubt what he considered the night's most powerful feat to be.

"It felt like it to me, the way he was getting guys out," Belt responded when asked if he thought this might be the night Bumgarner recorded the elusive no-hitter or perfect game. "You know it's something that's going to happen. We're just waiting on it."

Bumgarner (18-7) took a perfect game two outs into the eighth before Padres pinch-hitter Melvin Upton Jr. lined a single to center field on a 2-1 pitch.

For Upton, it was a chance to keep from being on the losing end of a perfect game for a fourth time in his career.

"I was trying to get him on the plate, trying to have a good at-bat," Upton said. "He threw fastballs and kind of left one over the plate a little bit, and I didn't try to do too much with it."

Bumgarner retired the next four Padres in order to finish off his fourth complete game of the season and second shutout. He had a complete-game three-hitter in a 5-0 win over the Washington Nationals on Aug. 16.

He also took a perfect game into the eighth last season against the Colorado Rockies, only to surrender an inning-opening double to first baseman Justin Morneau.

"I'm sure he's disappointed," Giants manager Bruce Bochy said of Bumgarner. "But he didn't show it."

Afterward, Bumgarner insisted his manager was incorrect.

"No, no, no," he insisted when asked if there was even a hint of disappointment in his outing. "If there was, I wouldn't tell you. But there isn't."

Bumgarner became the NL's second 18-game winner with his seventh victory in his last eight starts. He has held opponents to one run or fewer in five of those eight outings.

Padres right-hander Ian Kennedy (8-14) took the loss.

Pagan, left fielder Alejandro De Aza and second baseman Kelby Tomlinson had two hits apiece for the Giants, who won the series opener 9-1 over the Padres on Friday night.

Belt finished with three runs scored and two RBIs as the Giants won for the 18th time in their last 23 home games.

The shutout loss was the 18th of the season for the Padres, who have lost 14 of their last 20 games.

This one was almost the most newsworthy of the 18.

"When he's got it going, he's tough, and we caught him on a day he had it," Upton said of Bumgarner. "He didn't make many mistakes. The stars have to be aligned for a guy to pitch games like that.

"I've been perfect-gamed three times. It wasn't a situation I was unfamiliar with."

The first four runs scored against Kennedy easily could have been deemed unearned.

With two on and two out in a scoreless game in the bottom of the fourth, Byrd hit a liner to deep left field that the Padres' Justin Upton seemed to have all the way.

But the ball kicked off his glove as he reached the warning track, allowing catcher Buster Posey and Belt, both of whom had walked, to score the first two runs of the game.

It was generously ruled a double.

Kennedy unraveled at that point, allowing a run-scoring triple to Tomlinson and an RBI single to shortstop Ehire Adrianza, turning Upton's misplay into a four-run inning.

Kennedy had allowed just one hit in 3 2/3 innings before Byrd's double.

Pagan's homer, just his second of the season, led off the fifth and increased the margin to 5-0.

The Giants added two more runs in the inning on an infield out by Belt and Byrd's third RBI of the night, a single that ended Kennedy's night.

Kennedy was charged with seven runs in 4 2/3 innings. He allowed seven hits, walked three and struck out two.

NOTES: Giants LHP Madison Bumgarner's complete-game effort was the 10th of his career. The shutout was his fifth. ... One of the Padres who didn't reach base in the game was RF Matt Kemp, whose streak of having gotten aboard at least once in 31 consecutive games thus ended. ... Padres RHP Ian Kennedy began the night with a 2.41 lifetime ERA against the Giants. The seven earned runs he allowed were two more than he'd ever given up in a game against the Giants. ... San Diego announced a pitching change for Sunday after the game. Scheduled starter RHP Colin Rea (soreness in right forearm) has been scratched and will be replaced by RHP Odrisamer Despaigne.