Originally published by DodgerBlue.com
The Los Angeles Dodgers have relied on Emmet Sheehan and Roki Sasaki in their rotation to begin the year, and now they are also incorporating Justin Wrobleski as a sixth starter.
All three of them have tremendous upside, but each come with risk, primarily in the form of shorter starts. No pitcher will be at their best in every outing, but the Dodgers have seen meltdowns from their younger arms more often than they’d hope.
By carrying three pitchers in their rotation that don’t consistently go deep into games, the Dodgers are playing with some fire and risking their bullpen. But manager Dave Roberts also expects them to start pitching deeper into games on a more consistent basis, via Dylan Hernandez of the California Post:
“Obviously, ideally, you’d like to carry none,” Roberts said. “Truth be told, I don’t want any of those (types of) guys. When you’re a starter, part of the deal is you’ve got to log innings. It’s part of the hallmark of starters, and Emmet and Roki have got to graduate to that point.”
Sasaki and Sheehan both pitched a total of nine innings through their first two starts. Both of them also turned in a start where they failed to record an out in the fifth inning.
Sheehan then went six innings this past Friday, but Sasaki completed only four in the series finale against the Texas Rangers. That snapped a streak of Dodgers starters completing at least five innings in 10 games in a row.
Meanwhile, Wrobleski has only made one start this year out of two total appearances entering Monday, and struggled in his second inning of work, allowing three runs before bouncing back to finish off the final two innings.
With Wrobleski moving into the rotation, the Dodgers also won’t have anyone in their bullpen who can go three innings or more if one of their starters has a shorter outing. That adds further stress on the bullpen, and puts more pressure on their staters to go deep into games on a consistent basis.
Emmet Sheehan improving
Sheehan was looking to bounce back in his second start of 2026 and while there were still things to work on, he was much more effective against the Washington Nationals. He then built on that performance against the Rangers, most noticeably seeing an uptick in fastball velocity after facing lingering questions since Spring Training.
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