Starters Weren’t Getting Job Done

Some quality control appears to be in order for the Dodger starting pitchers, who have fallen far off the pace they established in winning seven of their first eight decisions.

Dodger starters had not posted a quality start of six innings or more and three earned runs or fewer in seven consecutive outings before Odalis Perez held the Colorado Rockies to one run in seven innings Friday night at Dodger Stadium. The Dodgers had lost six of those games.

“You can’t go through a season of 162 games and not have some stretches like this,” catcher Jason Phillips said. “Hopefully, we’ve rectified it, at least for the short term.”

The starters had amassed eight quality starts during the team’s franchise-best 12-2 start, including three by Derek Lowe and two each by Perez and Jeff Weaver. Lowe (2.04 earned-run average) and Perez (3.64) are the only starters with an ERA under 4.00. Collectively, Dodger starters were 8-7 with a 4.52 ERA before Saturday.

Phillips attributed part of the slowdown in pitching production to an offense that had also cooled. The Dodgers had averaged 3.6 runs over their last eight games before Saturday.

“When the offense isn’t pushing across a lot of runs, you’re trying to make the perfect pitch instead of just making your pitch,” Phillips said. “I think we were kind of guilty of that the last week.”

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Jim Tracy has guided his team to the playoffs only once in his first four seasons as Dodger manager, but he is without equal when it comes to success over the season’s first month.

According to the Elias Sports Bureau, Tracy is the winningest major league manager in April among those who have been on the job since at least 2001, Tracy’s first season. Tracy has a .593 winning percentage with a 73-50 record in April after Saturday’s victory.

In second place is New York Yankee Manager Joe Torre, who had a .584 winning percentage with a 73-52 record through Saturday.

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Jayson Werth (broken left wrist) had one hit and five walks in 23 plate appearances in intrasquad games in extended spring training in Vero Beach, Fla., Friday and Saturday. Antonio Perez (strained left hamstring) had a hit and a walk Saturday. Wilson Alvarez (left shoulder tendinitis) will either throw in the bullpen today or be activated for the game against Colorado.

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DODGERS TODAY DODGERS’

DEREK LOWE vs. ROCKIES’ SHAWN CHACON

*--* THE MATCHUPS 2005 2004 VS OPP TEAMS/PITCHERS W-L ERA TEAM W-L IP ERA Colorado/Chacon (R) 1-0 3.18 1-2 0-2 5.1 16.87 DODGERS/Lowe (R) 1-2 2.04 2-3 1-0 7.0 0.00

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Dodger Stadium, 1 p.m.

TV --FSNW2. Radio --980, 1330.

Update --Lowe had not given up an earned run in 17 consecutive innings over two starts before his last outing, in which he gave up four runs in seven innings during a 4-2 loss to Arizona. Chacon is 2-0 with a 1.80 earned-run average in his last three starts against the Dodgers, although two of those came in 2003.

-- Ben Bolch