Emmet Sheehan missed all of the Los Angeles Dodgers’ World Series championship 2024 season after undergoing Tommy John surgery last May.

The right-handed starting pitcher recently took a major step in his recovery process. Sheehan began facing live hitters and threw 40 pitches in his session on Thursday, per Bill Plunkett of the Orange County Register.

Sheehan is reportedly a couple weeks away from a rehab assignment.

Los Angeles initially selected Sheehan as the No. 192 overall pick in the sixth round of the 2021 MLB Draft. The Boston College product progressed quickly through the farm system and made his MLB debut on June 16, 2023 against the San Francisco Giants.

But the 25-year-old has not pitched in an MLB game since his rookie season in 2023. He made 11 starts and 13 appearances, accruing a 4.92 ERA and recording 64 strikeouts across 60.1 innings.

Sheehan has made one postseason appearance that year, throwing 3.2 innings in the Dodgers’ 11-2 loss to the Arizona Diamondbacks in Game 1 of the National League Division Series in 2023. Sheehan allowed three of those runs during his outing.

After his rookie season, the Dodgers placed Sheehan on the 60-day injured list ahead of the 2024 season.

The Tommy John recovery process is a long road but Sheehan has not endured it alone. In addition to Sheehan, Dodgers’ right-handed pitchers River Ryan and Kyle Hurt are also recovering from Tommy John surgery.

Following Sheehan’s procedure in May, Hurt received the surgery in July and Ryan in August. Both Hurt and Ryan have resumed throwing on the mound but have not completed a bullpen session.

Sheehan, Hurt, and Ryan are three of 13 pitchers on the Dodgers’ injured list, not including two-way player Shohei Ohtani who isn’t pitching