Dodgers News: Kazmir Talks About Tough Start

Scott Kazmir’s second game as a member of the Los Angeles Dodgers did not go as smoothly as his debut. Then again, few games ever go as smoothly as that. Kazmir pitched just four innings on Sunday afternoon before getting removed due to giving up six runs on seven hits, three of which were home runs.

Kazmir was given a 5-0 lead before he ever stepped foot on the mound, and even got to bat before he had to throw a pitch in the game. It didn’t matter. The San Francisco Giants torched him and got him removed from the game early enough to get to the Dodgers bullpen. Kazmir talked about the start.

From Doug Padilla, staff writer for ESPN dot com:

“That was huge,” Kazmir said. “You want to go out there and attack hitters and get these guys back in the dugout as soon as possible. For me to give up a two-spot (in the first inning), with a walk in between that, that’s just something you don’t do.”

As you can see, the veteran left-hander is pretty hard on himself. Pitchers hold themselves to a very high standard, so this is something you would normally expect to see out of a pitcher who is extremely competitive whenever he takes the ball every fifth day. You have to take the bad with the good.

Kazmir’s next start will be on Saturday night against these same Giants, but this time it will be a night game at Dodger Stadium. Perhaps the results will go a little bit differently, and perhaps Kazmir will deliver a performance that will calm the fans down just a tad. We shall see.