Houser (4-9) took the loss against the Dodgers on Wednesday, allowing five runs on five hits and four walks while striking out four batters over 2.1 innings.
Houser returned from a stay on the injured list to make his first start in nearly two months, but the outing did not go well. The right-hander needed 81 pitches to retire just seven batters, and he was down 4-1 by the end of the first inning. Houser's wildness was partly to blame for the poor opening frame -- he walked the first two batters he faced and issued three free passes overall in the inning -- but things weren't working much better when he did get the ball over the plate. Houser has registered a 5.15 ERA over 16 starts this season, but he may stick in the rotation for now with Aaron Ashby (shoulder) on the injured list.