It's early, but the Dodgers sure look flawed

Remember that good feeling the Dodgers had after beating the world champion Giants on Opening Day?  Or even after sweeping the Pirates in the next series?

It sure seems like a distant memory now.

Tuesday night's 9-2 loss to the Padres, the second straight letdown against one of the worst teams in the league, sure has raised a bunch of red flags.  The Dodgers had everything going for them: playing at home against a bad team, revenge in mind after the whole Carlos Quentin-Zack Greinke incident, and Jackie Robinson Day on Monday.  Instead, they're faced with all sorts of question marks:

• Will Matt Kemp ever get a big hit again?  Or, well, any hit for that matter.
• Will Greinke's injury be much worse than originally thought thanks to a deplorable start from Chris Capuano?
• Can the bullpen get somebody, ANYBODY, out?
• Can the offense step up and drive in runners when they're on base?

The last one might be the biggest one: Will a team with a $216 million payroll just continue to crumble thanks to injury and ineffectiveness?

Yes, we're only 14 games in, but I've got no issues with people wondering if this team is in a freefall.  They play such lifeless, boring baseball for the most part, it's almost hard to watch.  The last two nights they've fallen behind by scores of 3-0 and 4-0 before the end of the second inning.  And just like that, you already had the feeling that the game was over, even against the lowly Padres.  Granted, they did tie it up on Monday... only to have the bullpen blow it late.  Tuesday's game was a joke from the first pitch.

The injury to Hanley Ramirez has obviously been a huge blow.  In his place we've had to suffer through Luis Cruz (.103), Justin Sellers (.167), and Juan Uribe (.214).  Combined, they're hitting .146.  Ramirez could swing with one hand and do better than that.  A $216 million payroll, and Dodger fans have to watch this crap each night.  Unbelievable.  Hanley says he's coming back sooner than we think, and we can all thank the Lord for that.

Then there's Greinke's injury, which looks to be devastating after watching Capuano labor last night.  He lasted two whole innings, giving up five runs on five hits and two walks without any strikeouts.  Plus he somehow strained his calf covering first.  Look, I'm not at all trying to make fun of someone getting hurt, but that was just symbolic of how the night went for him.

Lastly, there's Mr. Matt Kemp.  I went into much detail about his struggles the other day, and unfortunately for him, that hasn't changed at all.  He's 10-for-54 on the year for a .185 average.  He only has four RBIs.  He has no homers.  He only has three walks.  He has struck out 17 times.  To put is simply, he's as lost as lost can be right now.  And he's still hitting in the #3 hole, effectively killing any rally when Carl Crawford and/or Mark Ellis gets on base.

I haven't even touched on the bullpen, as they started off like gangbusters, and have since walked everybody and their mother.  I just cringe when I see someone warming up.  It seems like they've even been walking people in the bullpen.  What happened to them?

So ya, it's been ugly.  The Padres came into Dodger Stadium with a paltry 2-10 record, and right now look like World Series contenders.  The Dodgers look like celler dwellers.  And with so many more question marks than solutions right now, they really have their work cut out for them as they finish the Padres series and travel to Baltimore for three.  If they don't get Wednesday's game with Clayton Kershaw on the mound, then it could very well be a o'fer week for them.

And with the Rockies, Giants, and Diamondbacks playing very well right now, it's not a stretch at all to say the Dodgers better figure things out quickly.  If they don't, it could already be too late.