Emmet Sheehan addressed a rough outing against the Boston Red Sox on August 2, 2026, saying the trouble stemmed from execution rather than any mechanical flaw. "No, I think it was bad execution," the Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher said during a press conference.
Sheehan pointed to his third inning as the main issue, explaining that he missed his spots on pitches the Red Sox were prepared to hit. "Those are pitches that those guys can hit and I was in the scouting report and I just missed my spot," he said. He also acknowledged a drop in velocity during that inning, noting that his mechanical issues tend to compound each other. "It's all tied together," he added.
Asked about a borderline pitch in the first inning that could have been challenged, Sheehan said it did not change the outcome of that frame, attributing the trouble instead to his own missed locations and pitch selection. "I think it was mostly just myself missing spots and, uh, you know, maybe throwing the wrong pitch at certain times," he explained.
Sheehan said he has struggled to string together consecutive strong starts this 2026 season and could not pinpoint the exact cause. "If I knew, I would fix it. Um, but I'm going to keep trying to fix it," he stated. He acknowledged the recurring nature of the problems has been frustrating despite his efforts, mentioning, "it seems like it's the same stuff, but it's frustrating when you, you know, feel like you're doing everything to fix it and it's not happening."
On the matter of in-game coordination, Sheehan said he was on the same page with Fony, noting they had discussed an adjustment beforehand that was carried out during the game. "He was on the same page as me. Um, we went over it before and he adapted on the flag," he said. Sheehan also denied that outside rumors circulating before the start had been a distraction, answering simply, "no," when asked directly.
Looking ahead, Sheehan said there is no alternate plan beyond continuing to take the mound and working to improve. "The only thing I can do is try to get better. It's, you know, there's no other option," he said.