LOS ANGELES -- Kershaw and Greinke and pray for ... well, "rain" doesn't rhyme with Greinke anyway and Los Angeles Dodgers fans probably aren't going to get anywhere begging for drought relief during the summer.
But they must feel a bit like Boston Braves fans in the 1940s, when Warren Spahn and Johnny Sain were the only pitchers they could count on, thus the plea for precipitation in the well-known poem from the era.
It was another ugly start from someone not named Clayton Kershaw or Zack Greinke, as Mat Latos and the Dodgers' bullpen got hit around again in a 10-3 loss to the Cincinnati Reds on Thursday night. In the past six games, Kershaw and Greinke have combined to pitch 14 scoreless innings while the rest of the Dodgers' rotation has posted a 9.64 ERA while averaging 4 2/3 innings a start. The Reds, the No. 11 offense in the National League, had 15 hits.
How it happened: Latos has had two of those subpar outings. He heard some boos in the fifth inning after Brandon Phillips and Eugenio Suarez hit back-to-back ringing RBI doubles. Latos, who criticized the Reds after he was traded from there to Miami last winter, allowed five runs -- four earned -- on seven hits over 4 2/3 innings.
The Dodgers couldn't get a key hit in the early innings against Cincinnati starter Keyvius Sampson. An Andre Ethier double-play ball -- turned deftly by Suarez -- deflated a third-inning rally. The Dodgers' bullpen, pressed into heavy action when Greinke or Kershaw isn't pitching, again proved soft in the middle innings. Luis Avilan, Pedro Baez and J.P. Howell all allowed pile-on runs as the Reds made it a laugher.
What it means: The Dodgers lost a game in the NL West standings, as the San Francisco Giants beat the Washington Nationals 3-1. The Dodgers now lead by 2 ½ games.
Notable: The Dodgers acquired four pitchers in a 13-player, three-team trade a couple of days before the non-waiver deadline. Latos has a 6.74 ERA as a Dodger. Alex Wood has 5.56 ERA as a Dodger. Relievers Jim Johnson (23.14 ERA) and Luis Avilan (7.20 ERA) also have struggled. Avilan walked a batter and allowed two hits before Baez came in and allowed a three-run home run. Johnson worked a scoreless seventh inning to actually lower his ERA thanks to a double-play ball. ... Joc Pederson sliced a home run to left field in the fourth inning. It was his second home run in 16 games since the All-Star break. Pederson hit 20 home runs before the break. ... Justin Turner came off the disabled list earlier in the day and pinch-hit in the fifth inning, hitting a 330-foot single off the right-field wall.
Up next: The series continues Friday night at 10:10 ET. Wood (7-7, 3.72 ERA) opposes Cincinnati's John Lamb, a pitching prospect making his major league debut. The Reds acquired Lamb from the Kansas City Royals in the Johnny Cueto trade.