{"id":30472,"date":"2025-03-04T07:48:42","date_gmt":"2025-03-04T07:48:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/usatoday.azontree.com\/?p=30472"},"modified":"2025-03-04T07:48:42","modified_gmt":"2025-03-04T07:48:42","slug":"%f0%9f%94%a5-standout-alert-dodgers-pitcher-among-top-12-performers-in-spring-training","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/usatoday.azontree.com\/?p=30472","title":{"rendered":"\ud83d\udd25 Standout Alert: Dodgers Pitcher Among Top 12 Performers in Spring Training!"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\"Feb<\/picture><\/figure>\n
Feb 12, 2025; Glendale, AZ, USA; Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Dustin May stretches with teammates during a Spring Training workout at Camelback Ranch. Mandatory Credit: Joe Camporeale-Imagn Images \/ Joe Camporeale-Imagn Images<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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Los Angeles Dodgers right-hander Dustin May is one of three pitchers competing for the No. 5 spot in the rotation this spring.<\/p>\n

In two Cactus League outings, May has certainly stood out as one of the top performers this spring, despite making a long-awaited return from elbow surgery and a life-threatening emergency.\u00a0MLB.com’s David Adler\u00a0listed him as a top 12 Statcast standout from the first week of spring.<\/p>\n

All of May’s pitches have been elite, but his curveball has surpassed everything else with its mind-boggling movement \u2014 even better than his curveball from 2023.<\/p>\n

The right-hander’s curveball is averaging 85.2 mph with a 3,384 rpm spin rate and 19 inches of horizontal break. Furthermore, May is leading pitchers this spring with the highest-spin curve and he ranks top-five in horizontal movement and top-10 in velocity.<\/p>\n

May understands just how high caliber of a player he can be in Major League Baseball, but his health plays an important role in 2025.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen I\u2019m healthy, I\u2019m good enough to be in any rotation and I\u2019m good enough to be at the top of any rotation when I\u2019m healthy,\u201d\u00a0May said. \u201cI just have to go out and be healthy. That\u2019s all I have to do. It\u2019s black and white. Healthy, not healthy \u2013 there\u2019s not a lot of gray area in between.\u201d<\/p>\n

As for finally returning to the mound, the right-hander expressed relief in finally pitching for the Dodgers.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt felt amazing to be back,\u201d May said postgame. \u201cHuge, huge weight has been lifted off my shoulders. \u2026 I\u2019m alive. I\u2019m glad I\u2019m here. It was just a breath of fresh air, like a new beginning.\u201d<\/p>\n

After May ruptured his esophagus in a freak accident, he has a new perspective on baseball and life in general.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was definitely a life-altering event,\u201d May said. \u201cIt was definitely very serious. It\u2019s not a very common surgery. It was definitely an emergency.<\/p>\n

\u201cI probably wouldn\u2019t have made it through the night if I didn\u2019t have it.\u201d<\/p>\n

May appears to have a strong chance of claiming the final spot in the Dodgers rotation, but he will have to outshine Tony Gonsolin and Bobby Miller for the remainder of spring. If May doesn’t win the competition, there is speculation the Dodgers will test him as a reliever out of the bullpen.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Feb 12, 2025; Glendale, AZ, USA; Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Dustin May stretches with teammates during a Spring Training workout at Camelback Ranch. 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