MIAMI -- Injured Chicago Cubs reliever Clayton Richard is hoping his time on the disabled list will afford him a “reset” to his season after compiling a 7.30 ERA in 22 appearances before a blister underneath a nail on his pitching hand sidelined him.

He’s not blaming the injury for any of his pitching woes, however.

“Realistically, it’s something that just came up,” Richard said. “I don’t think it made a huge difference.”

Clayton Richard has pitched to a 7.30 ERA this season after posting a 3.83 mark in 2015. Jasen Vinlove/USA Today Sports

So what has been the problem? Richard has appeared in about the same amount of games this year as he did in 2015 for the Cubs, but the numbers are dramatically different, beginning with that high ERA.

“I think it’s falling behind hitters and them getting on base one way or another,” Richard said. “When I come back, I have to focus on getting ahead of guys, and when I do, getting them to get it on the ground.”

To illustrate, Richard has gone 3-0 on hitters 6 percent of the time this season compared to 1 percent last year. So it’s not a surprise one statistic stands out for Richard more than any others -- his walk totals. Last year, he walked hitters just 3.9 percent of the time; this year, he’s at 9.5 percent. Granted, the numbers come in a small sample size, as manager Joe Maddon hasn’t shown a lot of trust in the lefty.

“Not a huge mechanical flaw,” Richard explained. “Just getting some timing down and my rhythm down.”

But here’s where his season starts to make less sense, at least statistically. Richard isn’t being hit any harder than last year, when he was a valuable piece in the Cubs' bullpen and compiled a 3.83 ERA. In fact, the opposition made much harder contact last season:

Richard hard-hit rate: 2015 2016 11 percent 8.9 percent Richard line-drive rate: 2015 2016 29 percent 18 percent

So, besides an increase in walks, could bad luck be Richard’s problem? According to ESPN Stats and Information research, his BABIP (batting average on balls in play) of .420 this season is eighth highest among relievers with 10 or more appearances. Last season -- while giving up harder contact -- his BABIP was only .297. Plus, he’s inducing ground balls this year at the highest rate of his career.

Achieved in a small sample size or not, it’s almost shocking to see those numbers and a high ERA. Having said that, there are a lot of factors that can skew the comparison from last year to this year. Richard started three games last season, so that changes the dynamic, as does the high- and low-leverage situations he has appeared in. Plus, maybe he’s not pitching to the scouting report, so more balls are beating the defense and getting through the infield.

The bottom line, however, is maybe the eye test has failed us a little with Richard. The opposition isn’t hammering him -- though he’s still not a reliable arm by any means right now. Maybe he will be after his stint on the disabled list.

“I’ll use this time where I’m not trying to compete every day so I can look at what I have to do to get better,” Richard said. “Then I can make those adjustments.”