It’s not hyperbole to say that Emmet Sheehan has been a godsend to the Los Angeles Dodgers this year.
Toggling back and forth between starter and reliever roles, the Connecticut native has gone 6-3 with a 2.82 ERA in 73.1 innings pitched this season.
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There’s no question Sheehan will be a key member of the pitching staff heading to the postseason. The question is, what will his role entail?
Manager Dave Roberts recently spoke to the media after Sheehan’s last outing Friday night in Seattle versus the Mariners in which the pitcher went only one inning. According to Roberts, there’s clearly going to be a defined role for him moving forward.
Roberts specified that Sheehan will have a one-inning role throughout the postseason. This would in theory make Sheehan more of a high-leverage arm rather than a bulk innings eater.
There’s likely some gamesmanship here. It doesn’t make much sense to paint oneself into a corner when it comes to usage. If Sheehan has to go more than one inning, he will. The Dodgers do have ample pitching depth to the point where others could throw multiple innings if asked to do so out of the ‘pen. Clayton Kershaw, Justin Wrobleski, and Ben Casparius come to mind immediately in a situation like that.
With the right-handed options out of the bullpen not being overly consistent, it makes sense the team would look to Sheehan in pressure-packed situations. He’s been utterly brilliant this year, and has been demonstrating why the team thought so highly of him as he came through the farm system.
On the year, Sheehan is above the 90th percentile in chase percentage, whiff percentage, and strikeout percentage. The swing-and-miss stuff is immensely important for any staff to possess during postseason play. Should Sheehan continue on this clip, there’s a real world where he’s among the most vital members of the staff whether it be as a starter or as a reliever.
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Photo Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images
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