Dustin May gave Milwaukee three brisk innings Saturday, enough to help the Brewers beat St. Louis 3-2 at a sold-out American Family Field and enough to leave the club with one more October decision on its hands.
| Game | Result | May | Key figures |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cardinals at Brewers | Brewers 3, Cardinals 2 | 3 innings, 5 strikeouts | 99.2 mph top velocity; Alec Burleson HR projected at 432 feet |
May retired the side in order in the first, striking out the first two Cardinals he faced while reaching 99.2 mph. A broken-bat single accounted for one run in the second, and Burleson got him in the third with a two-out solo shot that carried an estimated 432 feet.
It was the last regular-season appearance for May, and the Brewers now have the coming week to determine how he fits on the National League Division Series staff. The possibilities include a postseason rotation spot alongside Jacob Misiorowski and Logan Henderson, though Milwaukee has not settled those assignments.
“This is not a tryout session,” manager Pat Murphy said before the game.
That stance comes despite a rough finish to May’s regular season after Milwaukee acquired him at the Trade Deadline with October in mind. He posted a 5.65 ERA across 10 starts for the Brewers and worked at least five innings only once in his final eight outings.
Not every short outing was a performance issue. May was removed immediately after being hit by a line drive on the first pitch of a start against the Mets at Citi Field. His final two turns were also shortened deliberately as the Brewers tried to give him a cleaner path into the postseason.
That approach did not produce the desired result in Philadelphia. Asked to cover six outs in his previous appearance, May allowed two runs, issued two walks and surrendered a home run. Four days later, he was back on the mound against St. Louis looking for a better closing note.
Milwaukee wants May ready, not auditioning
Pitching coach Chris Hook said the immediate concern was May’s confidence rather than a final judgment on his role. Hook said postseason pitching asks a player to operate at another level, whether the assignment is brief relief work or a longer outing.
“It’s important for his psyche to perform well,” Hook said before Saturday’s game. “The playoffs are a different animal. It gets turned up. We know what his stuff can be, in short stints or a longer stint. I’m not really worried about it.”
Hook said the staff will meet Monday to sort through assignments, adding that May’s main job was to leave Saturday feeling prepared for whatever comes next.
“The biggest thing is for him to come out of this in a good spot, thinking, ‘Now I feel like I’m ready to do this,’” Hook said. “That’s No. 1 for me.”
The adjustment after a midseason move
Milwaukee’s staff also sees a larger challenge in May’s uneven stretch. A pitcher arriving in August must learn a new organization, new coaches and new routines while games carry pennant-race consequences.
Hook said he normally uses the six weeks of Spring Training to understand how each pitcher prefers to work, communicate and prepare. Trying to establish that relationship in August and September is, in his words, “a humongous challenge.”
“I feel for those guys, the hired guns,” Hook said. “There’s a lot of pressure. This guy wants to compete. There’s no doubt about that. He wants to do well.”
Saturday offered the Brewers both sides of May: the fastball that can take over an inning and the mistake that can leave the yard. With the Division Series ahead, Milwaukee still has to decide which version of that pitcher it wants to deploy—and when.
