Dodgers’ Emmet Sheehan to Begin 2024 Season on IL With Shoulder Soreness
Los Angeles Dodgers right-handed starter Emmet Sheehan will open the season on the 15-day injured list after experiencing shoulder soreness, manager Dave Roberts told reporters over the weekend.
Sheehan, expected to compete for the club’s fifth starter’s spot, dealt with body aches and pain upon arriving at spring training last month before being shut down with shoulder discomfort. Those concerns have prevented him from appearing in a Cactus League game this spring.
The 24-year-old did, however, complete his first bullpen session of the spring on Sunday, as The Athletic’s Fabian Ardaya reported. It was a positive development in what the team hopes will be a brief IL stint beyond Opening Day.
Los Angeles’ 2024 campaign will kick off a bit earlier than most, as the franchise will travel to Seoul, South Korea, for a two-game series versus the San Diego Padres from March 20-21. Both clubs will receive a few days off before resuming their schedules in North America.
Given that break, the Dodgers likely won’t require a fifth starter until the start of April, buying time for Sheehan to recover from his shoulder ailment.
The 6-foot-5 righty, a 2021 sixth-round selection by Los Angeles, began last season at Double-A and made 12 appearances (10 starts), earning a sparkling 1.86 ERA with 88 strikeouts in 53.1 innings before advancing to Triple-A. There, his stint lasted just three games before he was thrust into the big league starting rotation.
With injuries ravaging the Dodgers’ staff, Sheehan made his MLB debut against the San Francisco Giants on June 16th, tossing six no-hit innings while allowing just two walks and striking out three. And he didn’t look back from there.
The New York native finished with a 4-1 record over 13 appearances (11 starts) in 60.1 innings the rest of the way, posting a 4.92 ERA with a 25.8% strikeout rate and 10.5% walk rate. He held opponents to a .208 AVG but struggled to avoid the long ball, surrendering 11 home runs.
Assuming Sheehan misses 1-2 starts, the Dodgers will likely need to locate a replacement to round out a revamped staff that already includes Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Tyler Glasnow, James Paxton and Bobby Miller.
Michael Grove and Gavin Stone should be amongst the leading candidates for that role, considering each spent time in the majors a season ago. Another option could be Kyle Hurt if injuries arise, as could multi-inning reliever Ryan Yarbrough.
The Dodgers will receive pitching reinforcements as the season progresses, with Walker Buehler expected to return from Tommy John surgery shortly after Opening Day. Clayton Kershaw (shoulder surgery) and Dustin May (flexor tendon surgery) should also become factors around the All-Star break.
Tony Gonsolin almost certainly won’t pitch this season after undergoing Tommy John surgery last September however.
Even if Sheehan doesn’t miss much time, there’s a chance he could return to Triple-A once healthy, allowing the talented youngster to continue his development after logging fewer than 10 innings in his brief stint with the Oklahoma City Dodgers.
-Thomas Hall
Twitter: @Hall_Thomas_
Photo: D. Benjamin Miller.