After a red-hot 8-0 start to the season, the Los Angeles Dodgers find themselves slipping into a frustrating funk, capped by a humbling sweep at the hands of the Chicago Cubs. Following Wednesday’s 7-6 loss, their ninth defeat in 17 games, manager Dave Roberts didn’t hold back.

“We’ve got some things to clean up,” Roberts said postgame, after the Dodgers blew another lead and failed to contain Cubs outfielder Pete Crow-Armstrong for a second consecutive night.

Crow-Armstrong, who has ties to Roberts through the manager’s son, has become a full-fledged Dodgers killer. In the three-game series, he torched L.A. pitching with seven RBIs, including a momentum-shifting three-run homer on Wednesday. In five games this season against his hometown team, the 23-year-old has gone 10-for-22 with four homers, nine RBIs, and jaw-dropping defensive highlights.

“Pete Crow-Armstrong has really killed us,” Roberts admitted. “They’re just a more confident team right now.”

The Dodgers injury struggles are as bad as their struggles at the plate

Despite offensive flashes from Teoscar Hernández and Mookie Betts, the Dodgers continue to battle inconsistencies across the board. Slumping superstar Shohei Ohtani has gone cold at the plate, hitting just .232 over his last 14 games. He had a chance to flip the script with runners in scoring position on Wednesday, but a weak pop-out extinguished their best rally chance.

Adding to L.A.’s woes is a mounting injury list. Blake Snell, sidelined with shoulder inflammation, suffered a setback this week and will undergo further evaluation. The news comes as the Dodgers are already managing the absences of Clayton Kershaw, Tony Gonsolin, and Emmet Sheehan.

Their current rotation consists of Tyler Glasnow, Dustin May, Yoshinobu Yamamoto, and Roki Sasaki, but Yamamoto and Sasaki are being carefully managed with extended rest days. The bullpen, once a strength, faltered again in Chicago, with rookie Jack Dreyer surrendering four runs in Wednesday’s loss.

Roberts, typically composed, is sending a clear message: the Dodgers need to tighten up, and soon.

“It’s early, but we can’t keep giving games away,” Roberts said.

The Dodgers return to L.A. to open a homestand, looking to snap their skid and rediscover the dominant form that launched their season. With the division race tightening and key players struggling, urgency is quickly replacing optimism in the clubhouse.