As Emmet Sheehan’s struggles continue, Dodgers can afford to be patient

PHILADELPHIA — Emmet Sheehan looked as if he had salvaged another ugly night. A four-run second inning put the Los Angeles Dodgers into an early hole Monday against Cristopher Sánchez, perhaps the frontrunner for the National League Cy Young Award. But by the time Sheehan took the mound to start the sixth inning, the Dodgers had closed to within a run. Sheehan had kept his team in it.Until his outing fell apart again.“They came back,” Sheehan said, “then I kind of gave it back to them again after that.”Then Sheehan fell behind in the count. The 2-0 fastball he threw to Brandon Marsh registered at 92.8 mph, which would have been his fourth-slowest pitch of 2025 but has become the norm for his disappointing 2026.Velocity is not the only reason things have gone wrong for Sheehan this year, but it does not help. Marsh shot the pitch over the fence for a home run. The night quickly blew open from there, a 10-7 loss to the Philadelphia Phillies that was uglier than the final score and further sank Sheehan’s season.“Kind of a step back today, which is pretty frustrating,” Sheehan said after feeling like he’d figured some things out going into the All-Star break.Little has gone right for Sheehan, who has a 5.13 ERA after allowing six runs on Monday night. He falls behind in counts far too often, including against seven of the 11 batters he faced in the game’s first two innings as the Phillies took a 4-0 lead. His fastball velocity is down a tick from the 95.6 mph he averaged a year ago, and that pitch is getting pummeled. When he misses out over the plate, he’s getting crushed. Trea Turner jumped on a particularly appetizing slider for a two-run homer in that ugly second inning.“That was really a backbreaker early,” manager Dave Roberts said.Thoughts on the All-Star Game & pitchers being too goodKeith LawDiagnosing Sheehan’s issues has been a game of Whac-A-Mole and the Dodgers haven’t ruled out anything physical as impacting his performance. Sheehan has attributed his diminished velocity and inconsistent results to his pitching mechanics. That cannot explain all of it.