LOS ANGELES -- Only closer Takashi Saito was sent home sick Friday night, but it looks like the entire Dodgers team is ailing.

Despite an off-day wedged in between, they opened a series against Houston the same way they ended one with the Mets, getting thoroughly outplayed in a 7-1 loss, outscored in the two defeats by a total of 19-2.

With Rafael Furcal still sidelined by a stiff back, the offense again scratched out only a ninth-inning run to avoid a shutout. The winning pitcher was Brian Moehler, who hadn't started a Major League game since Sept. 29, 2006, and hadn't won a start in nearly two years.

The losing pitcher was Derek Lowe and he continued a troubling trend. He was charged with six runs in 5 1/3 innings, unable to complete six innings for the fifth consecutive start after beginning the season with three quality starts. In his last three starts, his ERA has swelled from 2.46 to 4.43.

"His last few times out, he's had trouble locating," said manager Joe Torre. "The first inning, he seemed very comfortable. After that, it's either the location or the ball isn't moving like it does."

Lowe isn't the only Dodgers starter who has been shaky lately. Brad Penny went only 4 2/3 innings on Wednesday, allowing 10 runs. Hiroki Kuroda checked in with 3 1/3 innings on Tuesday and Esteban Loaiza made it only 2 1/3 innings last Saturday and wound up on the disabled list.

"That's the biggest concern," Torre said of repeated short starts. "You fall behind and have to fight your way uphill. If we're going to be successful, our starters have to get us to late in the game."

Dodgers starters haven't thrown a complete game since Chad Billingsley (Saturday night's starter) went the distance against Houston last July and Lowe has gone eight innings this year once. In 16 of their 35 games this season, Dodgers starters haven't pitched past the fifth inning. Since April 12, they've gotten only one win from a starter other than Penny or Billingsley.

Lowe allowed a pair of runs in each of the second, third and fifth innings and let Houston's hottest hitter beat him. Lance Berkman came into the game hitting .607 during a seven-game hitting streak and added a 3-for-4 night, including a double leading off the second and a two-run homer in the fifth.

"The last four or five games have been disappointing," said Lowe, who spent the week tweaking his release point. "I've been here before. You do realize it's a long way to go and it's important to just go out there and get a good one."

Easier said than done, as Lowe is learning. Reliant on a sinking fastball, the pitch isn't sinking lately. He has no explanation, but insists there isn't anything physically wrong.

"I always say that the hitters tell you about the stuff you have that day," Lowe said. "I felt like my stuff was better than to give up six runs. I felt great, nothing's wrong. I'll be back out there in five days."

Catcher Russell Martin is puzzled, too.

"His sinker is not where it normally is," said Martin. "It's a pitch he's got to have and it doesn't have the same depth right now."

Offensively, the top four Dodgers hitters went 1-for-14. The only run scored on a ground out, Andruw Jones' double cashed in by Chin-lung Hu's roller to second base.

That amounted to a moral victory for the slumping Jones and for Hu, 0-for-4 Friday night and 2-for-11 as the replacement at shortstop for Furcal, who is hitting .366.

"We're just fighting it right now," said Torre. "We're not being patient. We need to get back to that. We miss a lot of things about Furcal, we miss his offense, his defense, his leadership ability on the field. The most important thing is to get him healthy. We're not going to let a couple losses force us into something we'd be sorry for later."

Meaning, Furcal won't return to the lineup until he's healthy enough to avoid reinjuring the back, which sidelined him the last 12 games of last season. Furcal sounded more confident about a Saturday return before the game than after it.

"We'll see," Furcal said, when asked if he would play Saturday night. "It's tough for me. I want to play, but there's nothing you can do when you're hurt. If I play today, I don't think I could play later in the game. Practice is different than the game. It's better to miss two or three games and don't miss like a month. We'll see tomorrow what happens."

The game also marked the return of Yhency Brazoban, nearly a year after shoulder surgery. He needed a 1-2-3 double-play grounder to escape a bases-loaded jam for a scoreless inning.