Dustin May Was Excited For Opportunity To Right The Ship In Playoffs Ahead Of Game 3 Start

Dustin May was named the starter for the Milwaukee Brewers after their Game 2 win, and he is excited to prove himself in the playoffs after a rough second half of the season.

In Game 3, the Brewers had a chance to sweep the San Diego Padres when May got the call to start.

After the All-Star Break, May went 2-3 with very short outings, averaging a 4.96 ERA in just 52.2 innings pitched.

“Everyone knows when the postseason starts that everything is kind of a blank slate,” he said about the opportunity.

May is a hard-throwing right-hander who pitches well against the Padres, with a 1.23 ERA this year against them and at least six innings in each appearance. Manager Pat Murphy said he trusted May’s experience when making the decision. However, May hasn’t appeared in the playoffs since 2020.

May hadn’t pitched a long outing since September 11, and when he stepped on the mound, he started well before giving up 2 earned runs in just three innings, facing 14 batters. Pitch count wasn’t an issue for May, but Murphy pulled him after just 3.0 innings pitched.

The idea is that the plan was for May to always have a short leash in Game 3, and utilize the bullpen for the majority of the game. If May had kept his strong start going, he might have been given the chance to go deeper into the game, but it’s very possible he wouldn’t have been given that chance anyway.

Regardless, the Brewers couldn’t take advantage of May’s experience and strong history against the Padres and will have to close out the series in Game 4 or Game 5 to return to the NLCS.