Richards didn't allow a run and gave up just one hit and three walks with 10 strikeouts Wednesday against the Dodgers but fell one out shy of qualifying for the win.
Richards has shown promise at times, but he has completed five innings just once now in five starts. The one time he did was a brilliant outing, as he gave up just two hits and a walk in seven shutout innings April 14 against Pittsburgh. But Richards has now walked a whopping 14 batters in just 23.1 innings of work. As Wednesday night's outing shows, even when he's at his best in every other face of the game, Richards won't be able to pick up wins if he can't fix his control. Most managers would do their best to let their starter complete five innings with a shutout going, but Richards needed 100 pitches to get through 4.2 innings, and at that point, it was time for Miami to go to the bullpen.