Emmet Sheehan is making a timely push, and the Dodgers are paying attention.
The right-hander turned in another sharp outing Sunday, blanking the Miami Marlins across six innings in Los Angeles’ 6-4 loss. Sheehan gave up only two hits, punched out five, and issued just one walk, continuing the strong run he’s put together since coming back from Triple-A.
That followed his previous start, when he allowed one run over 5.2 innings and struck out 10. Two outings in a row like that don’t guarantee anything, but they do put Sheehan firmly in the postseason conversation.
A starting job still looks out of reach. The Dodgers’ rotation picture is crowded with Tarik Skubal, Tyler Glasnow, Blake Snell and Yoshinobu Yamamoto all expected to anchor the group in October. But Sheehan has already shown he can fill a bullpen role in the postseason, and long relief could be his path again.
Last year’s results out of the bullpen weren’t pretty. Sheehan posted an 8.59 ERA over six appearances. Even so, if this recent stretch keeps rolling into October, he’ll have made a real case for himself.
The season hasn’t been a straight line for Sheehan. Before this surge, he was sitting on a 5.29 ERA in 20 starts heading into the trade deadline, which led to a trip to Triple-A after the Dodgers’ blockbuster trade for Skubal.
Down there, he found his rhythm again. In four starts, he logged a 1.50 ERA over 18 innings and earned Pacific Coast League Pitcher of the Month honors for August.
The numbers now look much cleaner. After his last two starts, Sheehan’s ERA is down to 4.79, and he’s up to a career-high 123 strikeouts in 107 innings, also a career best.
He still has the rest of the month to keep building his case. If he keeps pitching like this, a postseason roster spot should be there for the taking.
His next chance comes next weekend against the San Francisco Giants. Before that, the Dodgers open a four-game road series against the Cincinnati Reds on Monday at 3:40 p.m. PT.
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Dodgers Create An October Dilemma With Surprising Pitching Decision
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Sheehans demotion creates an obvious wrinkle for October, since the move leaves him ineligible to rejoin the Dodgers before the end of the regular season unless another player gets hurt. For a team that values pitching depth as much as this one does, the decision adds another layer to how the staff will be lined up when the games start to matter most. [Read more 🡒]
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Long before he was introduced to Dodgers fans, Leitz was a finalist for the Padres PA announcer opening in 2014 and came up short. The experience still proved useful, though, because it gave him a better feel for what teams were looking for when he later auditioned for a part-time Dodgers position and ultimately landed the job that turned into a steady run in Los Angeles. [Read more 🡒]