With Walker Buehler and Julio Urias graduating from prospect status over recent seasons, the next wave of young pitchers in the Los Angeles Dodgers organization has been headlined by Dustin May, Dennis Santana and Tony Gonsolin, among others.
May and Gonsolin were non-roster invitees to Spring Training this year, and each right-hander has received an extended look in Cactus League play. Though for May, that had been limited to relief appearances, which was a different role than he’s accustomed to.
That changed on Wednesday night, as the Dodgers started May and brought Julio Urias out of the bullpen. Urias was initially scheduled to start but with a possibility to be part of the bullpen come Opening Day, the Dodgers swapped their young hurlers.
May enjoyed being given a chance to return to starting and explained a focus this spring on improving his changeup, as seen on SportsNet LA:
“I got to get back into my routine as a starter, which is nice. I got to kind of set the tone and it was great to get the first one back under my belt. … I’ve been focusing on throwing a changeup more. It hasn’t been the best, but I’m trying to just get it into games and get the feel back for it this season.”
May allowed a two-out RBI single to Cole Hamels but otherwise fared well against a Chicago Cubs lineup that was lined with everyday players. He held them to just the one run on three hits, and recorded three strikeouts over three innings.
May entered the start 1-0 with five strikeouts over six scoreless innings in three Cactus League relief appearances. If the Dodgers are aggressive, he could begin the season with Triple-A Oklahoma City.
But regardless of whether that’s the case or should May return to Double-A Tulsa, Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said he would not be surprised to see the 21-year-old make his MLB debut this season.
