Alex Wood, Dodgers bombed early and often in 12-4 loss to Arizona

What to make of Alex Wood?

In his last start, he held the Padres scoreless for seven innings. In his start Friday, he gave up eight runs to the Diamondbacks in less than two innings.

Surprise, the Dodgers went on to lose 12-4 to the Diamondbacks at Chase Field, their lead over the Giants in the National League West slipping to 7½ games.

It’s the first time since Aug. 21 that the Dodgers dropped a game in the standings.

It was Wood’s eighth start since being traded to the Dodgers at the non-waiver trade deadline. He is 3-4 with a 4.53 ERA as a Dodger. That’s at best mediocre stuff, which is hardly what the Dodgers had in mind when they acquired him from the Braves.

They already appear close to giving up on the other starter, Mat Latos, acquired at the trade deadline. And now Wood is proving unreliable.

He never looked close to the left-hander who held the Padres to three hits in his last start. He gave up a three-run homer to Wellington Castillo and a run-scoring triple to Chris Owings. And it would not get any better.

In the second inning he gave up a two-run homer to Paul Goldschmidt, who apparently is going to homer off any pitcher who puts on a Dodger uniform. It was Goldschmidt’s 18th home run against the Dodgers. When Jose Peraza committed an error behind him and Owings singled, the Dodgers went to Pedro Baez.

Baez immediately gave up a run-scoring double to Yasmany Tomas and a two-run homer to Nick Amed.

The Dodgers trailed 10-0 and the game was still in the second inning. They played the rest of it anyway, a spring training game breaking out in the stretch run.

Meanwhile, the Dodgers could do little with Arizona’s Robbie Ray, who had a record of 3-11 and was without a victory in his last 10 starts (0-7).

He struggled too, though it might be difficult to see from a glance at the box score. He held the Dodgers scoreless on two hits in his five innings. He went only five innings because it took him 95 pitches to get there. He walked three, but went to deep counts on almost every batter.

But it was that kind of night for the Dodgers. The Diamondbacks managed 17 hits against six Dodgers pitchers.

The Dodgers avoided their seventh shutout after they loaded the bases with two outs in the bottom of the ninth inning. Down to their last out, Justin Ruggiano hit a grand slam.

The Dodgers also lost another player to injury, although you can be forgiven if you forgot Alex Guerrero was still around. He pinch hit in the third, beat out an infield single and came up limping, holding what appeared to be his left hamstring. Just for variety, the Dodgers announced he had a strained his left calf.

It was even a tough night for the umpires. Home plate umpire Jim Wolf -- brother of former Dodgers pitcher Randy Wolf -- took a foul ball to the face mask that sent him to the ground in the bottom of the second inning. He left the game with what was presumed a concussion and the game finished with three umpires.