A bad start for relievers

Closer Jonathan Broxton and setup man George Sherrill were far from perfect in their first outings of the spring Tuesday, as they gave up a combined four runs and five hits in 12/3 innings of a 12-0 loss to the Colorado Rockies at Camelback Ranch.

But neither seemed to care, Broxton pointing to his health and Sherrill to his dismal history in the Cactus League.

Broxton, who is scheduled to pitch 10 or 11 innings this spring, said his main goal for camp is to make it through the exhibition season without getting hurt. So he didn’t care that he gave up a run and three hits in his inning on the mound.

“You have to pace yourself right now,” Broxton said.

Sherrill has made it no secret that he doesn’t care for spring training -- particularly in the Cactus League. The left-hander said he never pitched well in the spring when he was in camp with the Seattle Mariners in nearby Peoria and issued warnings in the first weeks of camp that his spring earned-run average would likely be inflated.

Sherrill said the unusually cold weather and strong winds affected him, as he gave up three runs (none earned) and two hits in two-thirds of an inning.

“I didn’t feel like I was throwing 85” mph, he said. “I couldn’t get any tackiness on my fingers. I have no idea how I did today.”

Kuo Taiwan-bound

Hong-Chih Kuo prepared for a trip to Taiwan with a perfect inning that included two strikeouts. Kuo will head back to his native country this morning as part of a 33-man split squad that will take part in a three-game exhibition series from Friday to Sunday.

The left-hander is looking forward to the last of the three games, which will be in Kaohsiung County, about an hour from his hometown of Tainan City. He is scheduled to pitch that day, meaning that his mother will get to see him play for the first time as a professional. (Kuo’s father died in 2000.)

Short hops

Casey Blake, who made an early exit the previous day because of discomfort in his right side, took part in running, hitting and fielding drills without any problems. “Casey’s fine,” Manager Joe Torre said. “He’s probably back on schedule tomorrow.” . . . Charlie Haeger felt pain in his hip during a rough outing (two runs, four hits in two innings) and was scratched from the Taiwan trip. Scott Dohmann will travel in his place.

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dylan.hernandez@latimes.com

twitter.com/dylanohernandez

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Colorado 12, Dodgers 0

AT THE PLATE: The Dodgers had only three hits, one by Andre Ethier and two by Xavier Paul. Rafael Furcal and Blake DeWitt drew two walks each.

ON THE MOUND: Hiroki Kuroda gave up two runs (one earned) and two hits in his first start of the spring. Closer Jonathan Broxton and setup man George Sherrill made their spring debuts, with Broxton giving up a run in one inning and Sherrill giving up three in two-thirds of an inning.

EXTRA BASES: This was an ugly game for the Dodgers; they were 0 for 7 with runners in scoring position. Matt Kemp made a first-inning throwing error that resulted in a Rockies run and DeWitt, who is a candidate to be the starting second baseman, booted a grounder hit right at him.

UP NEXT: Right-hander Vicente Padilla will start Wednesday’s game (noon PST) against the Arizona Diamondbacks at Camelback Ranch.

ON THE AIR: TV: Prime Ticket.

--Dylan Hernandez