Emmet Sheehan was the odd man out when getting optioned to Triple-A last Thursday, but he likely won’t be gone for long. The Dodgers right-hander pitched six perfect innings with 13 strikeouts on Wednesday for Oklahoma City.
On the road in Sacramento to face the River Cats, the Giants’ Triple-A affiliate, Sheehan needed only 73 pitches to pitch his gem, including 52 strikes.
Sheehan pitched well last week too, striking out six in four innings against the Padres, marking his return just 13 months after a hybrid Tommy John surgery and internal brace procedure on his right elbow. But those four innings were his longest outing to date, topping out at 3⅓ innings and 63 pitches during his rehab assignment.
The Dodgers, with an ongoing need for fresh arms in the bullpen, needed the roster spot, and opted to keep Justin Wrobleski, who was more stretched out than Sheehan, especially with this week coming up involving both Coors Field and potentially two games in six days. Wrobleski pitched five innings in the first of those outings on Tuesday, striking out seven in a win over the Rockies.
Sheehan’s roster spot was used first by Jack Little and then Will Klein, who mopped up 11 outs to finish out games last Thursday and Friday.
Dodgers manager Dave Roberts last Thursday, after Sheehan was optioned said, “Emmet will be back soon.”
While that might have been lip service, the Dodgers’ schedule lends credence to it, as they play games on the first nine days of July and will need to insert a starter at some point in that stretch. Sheehan is eligible to return July 4 or later, unless replacing an injured player earlier.
Sheehan properly stretched out on Wednesday thanks to how ridiculously efficient he was, needing only 73 pitches to complete six innings even with the 13 strikeouts.
The right-hander induced 21 swinging strikes, including 15 on his fastball. He struck out his final five batters faced to finish off the sixth inning. Sheehan’s outing nearly mirrored Jon Duplantier’s gem last September 24 for Oklahoma City, with six perfect innings and 12 strikeouts. Duplantier was pulled from that game, which was also a double-digit blowout at the time.
Just about the only adversity Sheehan faced on Wednesday was waiting around while the Comets kept scoring. Oklahoma City scored four runs in the third inning, eight more in the fourth, and three runs in the sixth. Sheehan left the mound with a 15-0 lead.
Thirteen strikeouts are a professional career high for Sheehan, surpassing his 11 on August 20, 2022 for High-A Great Lakes. He also struck out 10 batters in July 2022 with Great Lakes, in May 2023 for Double-A Tulsa, and on September 27, 2023 with the Dodgers.