Patrick Corbin gives up seven runs and the Diamondbacks fall 9-5 in Milwaukee.

MILWAUKEE – Lefthander Patrick Corbin’s first-inning issues resurfaced on Sunday afternoon, but it wasn’t the only inning that gave him trouble in his start against the Milwaukee Brewers.

Corbin gave up a hit and two walks to load the bases and the Brewers scored twice in the first, but they added four more in the fourth on Domingo Santana’s grand slam and tacked on another in the fifth.

With seven runs in four-plus innings, Corbin has given up 26 earned runs and eight home runs in 26 innings in May, a sharp drop-off after posting a 2.29 ERA through six starts in April.

“It’s frustrating,” Corbin said. “I definitely haven’t been throwing the way I want to. I’ve just got to keep working hard and go back out there and have a good bullpen and prepare for my next start.”

The two runs Corbin allowed in the first brought his season total to 12 given up in the opening inning of his 11 starts.

Corbin was asked whether he thinks he could make some adjustments to his routine to compensate.

“I don’t know,” he said. “I’ve been throwing a lot of pitches, which is tough that early in the game. We’ll see. Maybe I’ll go out there a little bit earlier and warm up and figure something out.”

Manager Torey Lovullo was asked if he was concerned about Corbin’s recent struggles.

“Not entirely,” he said. “He’s had some good moments inside of those outings. Maybe he spoiled us early on. We know the season has ups and downs and he’s grinding through it right now. But he’s done enough inside the innings he’s been very good in to show me he’s just fine.”

Goldschmidt gets rest in series finale

First baseman Paul Goldschmidt was out of the lineup on Sunday, the second time this season he’s been given a day off by Lovullo, who is trying to keep his players fresh in the midst of 17-day stretch without a day off, including 11 in a row on the road.

“You have to remember that while he’s out there doing his thing, he’s not a machine,” Lovullo said. “He needs moments off of his feet.”

Lovullo liked the idea of putting the off day after Saturday’s late-afternoon game, meaning Goldschmidt is likely to get an extended period of downtime.

The last time Goldschmidt did not start, on April 24, he came back the next day and went 4 for 4 with a home run.

Lovullo is hoping things play out similarly this time.

“I think that helps everybody understand the importance of this,” Lovullo said.

De La Rosa’s matchup considerations

Lovullo says he’s aware of left-hander Jorge De La Rosa’s recent issues against right-handed hitters, and that he’s going to take it into consideration as he determines reliever usage late in games.

But he said he doesn’t want to overlook the fact that De La Rosa was effective against right-handed hitters in April before struggling more recently.

“I’m certainly going to take into account that things haven’t been pristine for him,” Lovullo said, “but I don’t want him to get the feeling that we’re running from him or afraid to put him into those situations.

“I believe when he’s at his best he can handle anybody. And I know when he’s a reliever things are a little bit different than what his traditional numbers were as a starter.”

Lovullo was referring to the fact that while De La Rosa had pronounced splits as a starting pitcher, his stuff has ticked up as a reliever, which Lovullo believes gives him a better chance to get righties out.

Short hops

Lovullo said center fielder A.J. Pollock was expected to take Sunday off in his rehab from a groin injury.

And though he wouldn’t lay out plans for his return – or even for a potential minor league rehab assignment – Lovullo said that “this will be an important three or four days coming up” in Pollock’s rehab process.

» Right-hander Taijuan Walker will likely throw a simulated game on Tuesday in Pittsburgh, the last step before a potential return to the Diamondbacks’ rotation next weekend against the Marlins.

“Everything seems to be progressing the right way,” Lovullo said.