PHOENIX -- For Emmet Sheehan, it was never a matter of if, but when.
Over the first two months of the season, Sheehan had recurring issues with his fastball. Early on, his velocity was down across the board. As time went on, he threw harder in the early innings, only to see his velocity fade later in the game. But on Monday night, he maintained his velocity better than he had all season.
Sheehan tossed 6 1/3 strong innings against the D-backs in the series opener at Chase Field, retiring all but three of the 22 batters he faced. The problem? Two of those hitters took him deep for solo homers, and the Dodgers' offense fizzled in a 4-1 loss.
After allowing a one-out double to Corbin Carroll in the first inning, Sheehan retired 15 straight D-backs before serving up a game-tying homer to rookie Tommy Troy in the sixth. He gave up the lead one inning later, surrendering a go-ahead blast to Nolan Arenado with one out in the seventh.
Sheehan had minimal margin for error with the Dodgers plating their lone run of the game on a Freddie Freeman groundout in the third inning. L.A. went 2-for-8 with runners in scoring position, stranding five runners.
While the late home runs stung, Sheehan's stuff looked as good as it had all season. He averaged 95.9 mph, up 1.7 mph from his season average. In previous starts, Sheehan's velocity tended to fade from the fourth inning on, but he held it throughout Monday's outing, averaging 95.4 mph or higher with his fastball in every frame.