Dodgers News: Don Mattingly Focused On Moving Beyond Subpar Pitching

It is no secret the Los Angeles Dodgers’ starting pitching has been subpar as of late, save Zack Greinke and Clayton Kershaw. The bullpen ERA has skyrocketed since the All-Star break and the newly acquired pitchers have not performed as well as the front office expected them to.

Mat Latos struggled through another start Thursday night, and Alex Wood has allowed at least three earned runs in each of his two outings with the Dodgers. Brett Anderson, who’s filled the void left by Brandon McCarthy and Hyun-Jin Ryu, last allowed seven runs on 10 hits in just five innings.

Frustrating as that may be, Dodgers manager Don Mattingly is focused on continuing to push forward. “We’re going to keep going,” he said after Thursday’s drubbing at the hands of the Cincinnati Reds.

“Alex [Wood] has thrown the ball fine. Brett [Anderson] has been throwing the ball good all year long. Mat [Latos] has had a couple of bad starts back-to-back. We just got to go forward.”

Since joining the Dodgers, Wood has allowed seven runs in 11.1 innings in two games, both of which Los Angeles has lost. Though he was charged with three runs in his outing against the Philadelphia Phillies as a result of Joel Peralta giving up a grand slam.

Latos hasn’t fared any better than his left-handed teammate, allowing 11 runs in a combined 14.2 innings over two starts. In the first half of the season, the Dodgers pitching staff held a 3.30 ERA.

However, the second half has not been as kind as their ERA now sits at 4.39. The team is 13-12 since the All-Star break as the staff has allowed five or more runs in 11 of the 25 games. The most significant jump in numbers comes from the bullpen’s ERA.

It has increased nearly three full points, from 3.56 to 6.52, as they have almost eclipsed their total home runs allowed in the first half in just three weeks in the second half. However, the bullpen is not fully to blame for the rise in ERA. Anderson, Latos, and Wood have yet to make in through seven innings, with Latos failing to make it past the fifth in back-to-back starts.

A break for the bullpen has largely only come in games started by Greinke and Kershaw. The Dodgers used five relievers in Thursday’s loss and now look to Wood for some relief Friday night.

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