Dodgers option Emmet Sheehan back to Triple-A OKC

Sheehan is slated to pitch in relief for the Dodgers down the home stretch. He’ll be available for Tuesday’s game against the Rockies at Coors Field behind starter Eric Lauer. The 26-year-old former starter is back in the majors after spending a couple weeks in the minors. He offers very little fantasy appeal as a multi-inning reliever, but it wouldn’t be surprising to see his stuff play up in shorter bursts out of the bullpen.

The Dodgers sent Sheehan for a two-week stint in Triple-A to reset and now he’s reportedly coming back up to join the big league squad. His first appearance with Oklahoma City was a disaster as he was pulled in the first inning after allowing four hits and two runs. Then, he cruised through 5 2/3 scoreless frames with eight strikeouts in his following start. Yet, he’ll reportedly be an option out of the bullpen upon his return.

The Dodgers sent shockwaves through baseball by acquiring back-to-back AL Cy Young Award winner Tarik Skubal from the Tigers over the weekend. It’ll be Sheehan who loses his spot in the club’s rotation as a result. The 26-year-old was a trendy target in fantasy drafts this spring, but struggled mightily to a bloated 5.29 RA across 95 1/3 innings this season. He could potentially make it back to Los Angeles as a reliever for their upcoming postseason run. However, he can be safely dropped in all fantasy leagues.

Sheehan allowed two runs on a walk and three singles in the first and then gave up three solo homers in a seven-pitch span in the third. He hadn’t allowed three homers in any of his 19 previous starts. Sheehan fell to 4-8 with a 5.29 ERA. The Dodgers have lost his last five starts and nine of his last 10, which seems nearly impossible. With Tarik Skubal’s addition and Blake Snell nearing a return, Sheehan’s time in the Dodgers rotation should be about to come to an end. He could be more helpful to the team’s cause out of the pen.

Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic reports that the Dodgers will send outfield prospect Zyhir Hope and right-handed pitching prospects River Ryan and Brady Smith. It was initially reported that Emmet Sheehan was included, but multiple outlets have confirmed he’s not headed to Detroit. Skubal is inarguably one of the best pitchers in baseball and has won back-to-back Cy Young Awards for the Tigers, and he joins Los Angeles with a 2.79 ERA and 116/14 K/BB in his 16 starts this year. The pending free agent will join the loaded Dodgers’ roster as the new ace, and obviously, fantasy managers have no reason to believe he won’t continue to pitch at an elite level now that he’s in Los Angeles rather than Detroit.

Yoshinobu Yamamoto and Emmet Sheehan will start Saturday and Sunday, respectively. Henriquez made a brief appearance Thursday, retiring one of the three Mariners he faced in the seventh inning. He probably won’t pitch more than inning against Boston.

Sheehan struck out five in the 87-pitch outing. He departed with the lead, but the Dodgers’ bullpen surrendered it as they went on to lose 8-3. Sheehan didn’t give up any homers — a nice step from a player who has allowed 17 in 92 2/3 innings pitched this year, even if it was against the Juan Soto-less Mets. His 4.95 ERA through late July is a disappointing fantasy outcome. He’ll look to get rolling in his next scheduled start, at home versus the red-hot Red Sox.

Sheehan gave up eight hits, walked one and struck out six. He fell to 4-7 with the loss. Sheehan allowed four runs in the second inning before settling in. Then, at the end of his outing, he allowed two more runs in the sixth inning. A popular preseason breakout pick. things haven’t gone Sheehan’s way this season as evidenced by his 5.13 ERA. He’s lined up to face the Mets on the road this weekend.

Because of the forecasted rain, the two clubs won’t take a chance of getting the game in. Instead, the two teams will play a doubleheader Sunday, beginning at 12:35 P.M. ET. Emmett Sheehan and Ryan Weathers — no pun intended — were the scheduled starters for Saturday’s game, and likely will pitch at some point Sunday in the twin billing.

He’ll be followed by Emmet Sheehan on Saturday and Yoshinobu Yamamoto on Sunday. The Dodgers have not announced when Shohei Ohtani will return to the rotation. That makes it likely that it’ll be Justin Wrobleski and Eric Lauer in some order for the first two games against the Phillies in Philadelphia to open next week.