Emmet Sheehan should feel vultures circling as velocity issues persist in first Dodgers start

In his second start of spring training, Emmet Sheehan threw 66 pitches, 34 of which were fastballs. He failed to hit 95 MPH with any of them, and his velocity dipped as low as 91.8 MPH. His next and last start was a little better — he broke 95 a couple of times — but he was still sitting closer to 93.

Sheehan was sick for most of spring training, which limited him to just three outings, so the drop in velocity was something to take notice of but not necessarily to panic about so early. But, velocity aside, he didn't look very sharp in general; he put up a 5.91 ERA in those three starts in camp.

His Dodgers season debut on Friday wasn't much better. He gave up four runs on five hits (though two runs have to be partially credited to Jack Dreyer, who relieved Sheehan) and two walks in 3 1/3 innings. His fastball sat at 94 MPH, a full tick down from its average last season. It got as low as 91.2 MPH.

The problem for Sheehan during that start was mostly his changeup, but Ketel Marte did hammer a 93.4 MPH fastball for a solo homer, and Geraldo Perdomo jumped on one at 92.9 for a double.

Emmet Sheehan's velocity issues persisted in first Dodgers start of 2026

Sheehan is by far the most dispensable member of the Dodgers' rotation. That's not to say the Dodgers should or would ever option him after just one rocky start; it just means he's the easiest to replace if the struggles persist.

Justin Wrobleski is in the bullpen but could switch places with Sheehan. A little further down the line, after River Ryan has gotten a few starts in Triple-A and proven that his body can hold up after Tommy John, the Dodgers will need some way to get him major league innings.

Sheehan earned his rotation spot with an outstanding 2025 season in a hybrid role for the Dodgers. They're not going to call it quits on him easily, but when the issue is something as quiet and insidious as fastball velocity, fixing it could take a lot of trial and error. Just look at Roki Sasaki, who's been battling velocity problems since his last season in NPB.

For now, it's just something to monitor with Sheehan. But if we're still in the same place five, maybe six, starts into the year? The Dodgers might need to be concerned.