Dustin May’s rough finish didn’t shake the Brewers’ faith in him. When Pat Murphy laid out Milwaukee’s plan before Game 2, he made it clear May would take the ball for Game 3 of the National League Division Series on Tuesday at Petco Park.
The Brewers manager pointed to two things that kept May in the spot: his postseason background with the Dodgers and the way he handled San Diego earlier this season. Milwaukee picked him up from the Cardinals in a Trade Deadline deal that also brought in reliever JoJo Romero, and Murphy said the club had a clear purpose for the move.
“We brought him in to do that,” Murphy said.
May’s season with the Brewers has been uneven. He gave up three earned runs over his first 13 innings with the club, then stumbled badly over his final eight appearances, going 1-2 with a 7.61 ERA. That slide included a two-inning outing against the Mariners in which he was tagged for seven runs, plus an Aug. 26 start at Citi Field against the Mets where he was hit by a comebacker on the first pitch and had to exit.
He returned four days later, but the results didn’t improve much. Against the Rangers, he allowed four earned runs in 4 1/3 innings and later admitted, “It sucks to be sucking right now.”
September didn’t offer much relief, even as the Brewers liked the life in his stuff. Milwaukee tried to steady him by giving him more frequent work in shorter bursts during his final three regular-season outings, ending with a three-inning start against the Cardinals on Sept. 26.
Still, the Padres matchup is the big reason the Brewers are staying the course. May posted a 1.23 ERA in three starts against San Diego this season, striking out 22 over 22 innings.
“If you look at his numbers this year versus the Padres, it’s better than anyone,” Murphy said of keeping May on the roster for the series. “And he’s got some experience in this situation. That wasn’t a tough one.”
Milwaukee should also have help ready behind him if the night turns messy. Depending on how Game 2 uses the bullpen, the Brewers could have plenty of innings available, with multiple left-handed starters working in relief roles in this series, including the fully stretched-out Robert Gasser, along with Shane Drohan and Kyle Harrison, both of whom ended the year in shorter stints.
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