Although Dustin May didn’t factor into the decision Friday night, his six innings against the Texas Rangers tied a season high and it was a seventh time in as many starts he allowed two earned runs or fewer.
“I thought today was more on a positive note. After the third inning I started to mix my stuff more and I felt more confident with that,” May said after the Dodgers’ bullpen allowed the Rangers to reclaim the lead late.
May threw 11 curveballs and six changeups in the start, which were up from four and eight, respectively, his last time out. “Going forward I feel like that’s what we need to use, mixing my offspeed more and stop being so cutter and two-seam reliant,” he said.
In addition to limiting the Rangers to just two runs, May largely avoided hard contact. There was one exception, however, when Shin-Soo Choo broke up the scoreless tie with an RBI double in the third inning.
“It was a well-executed pitch but it was right where he hits the ball. My two-seam went right into his bat path and he hit it pretty hard,” May explained. “Other than that I thought it was pretty solid.”
He didn’t help his cause shortly after with an errant pickoff throw to second base, which allowed Shoo to advance to third base and then score on a blooper into right field. “I had a better idea in my mind of how I was going to execute it,” May said of the pickoff attempt.
“Stepping off and throwing it sounded a lot better in my head than doing it in person. I just need to slow down and make a better quality thought.”
Deep in the heart of Texas
Friday’s start also marked a bit of a homecoming for May, who hails from Texas. “It was an awesome feeling,” he said.
“Being back in my home state of Texas, playing the team I grew up watching and rooting for, it was a pretty phenomenal and awesome experience.”
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