Arroyo checks out fine, baffled by struggles

5/5/2008 5:04 PM

By JOE KAY
AP Sports Writer

CINCINNATI (AP) -Bronson Arroyo wishes there was an obvious reason for his horrid start, some nagging injury that could be blamed for throwing off his pitches. No such explanation.

The Cincinnati Reds' No. 2 starter got checked out by the trainers on Monday and didn't hear anything that he didn't already knew. Physically, he's never been better.

``I feel good,'' Arroyo said Monday, a day after he got pounded in a loss to Atlanta. ``I don't even have one ache. nothing I can complain about. I don't even have like, 'My knee's bugging me, I've got a headache.' Nothing. Nothing.''

That's why he's become the Reds' biggest enigma during their 12-20 start. People are trying to find something to fix, and so far they've come up with nothing. Nothing.

``I'm searching, you know what I mean?'' said manager Dusty Baker, who wanted Arroyo to get checked out for some physical flaw. ``I'm searching like everybody else. I didn't know what else to put the finger on. He said he feels fine physically.

``I really don't know.''

The right-hander lasted only 1 1-3 innings - the shortest of his 166 career starts - in a 14-7 loss in Atlanta on Sunday. With his latest poor performance, Arroyo's ERA inflated to 8.63 and left him 1-4 in seven starts.

In his April 23 start against Houston, Arroyo gave up eight runs in only 3 2-3 innings of a 9-3 loss. He gave up a career-high four homers in a 5-3 loss to Philadelphia on April 7.

The only explanation he can find: Just one of those stretches where nothing goes right. What makes it more glaring is that it's coming at the start of the season, while his team is really struggling.

``When it happens for an extended period of time, people go, 'Something's wrong.' There ain't nothing wrong,'' he said. ``You're going to have guys who have Hall of Fame numbers who go 2-for-40 at some point in their career. That's just the way the game is.''

Arroyo went 9-15 with a 4.23 ERA in 34 starts last season. His worst stretch came in June, when he was 0-3 with a 5.23 ERA. He hopes this season is a case of the slump coming early.

``In a perfect world, I'll have 26 or 27 starts left,'' he said. ``I still feel like I can make it a damn good year.''