As things were progressing during Spring Training 1.0 earlier in the year, it seemed as if the Dodgers were planning on starting hard-throwing righty Dustin May at Triple-A Oklahoma City in its rotation, at least for the beginning of the season.
However, this time around, things will be different.
Back in February, the line of thinking was that management wanted to groom May strictly as a starter, believing it was his best value as a pitcher. As such, the coaching staff felt he should be a part of a normal rotation, getting regular, timely starts.
Obviously, since there will be no minor league baseball this season, having May in a regular, Triple-A rotation is impossible. Sure, most of the farmhands will be getting in work in some shape or form (simulated games galore), but the absence of a true competitive league could theoretically wreak havoc on a prospect’s development.
Plus, with active rosters being stretched to 30 players at the beginning of the season, one would think that May would be included, being that he’s certainly one of the most talented pitchers in the organization, coupled with the fact that there is no limit to the number of pitchers a team can carry.
Skipper Dave Roberts has already indicated the club plans on utilizing a five-man rotation to open the season. Several pitchers—including May, Ross Stripling and Tony Gonsolin—are in the running for the spot vacated by David Price, but even if May is not among the initial starting five, it might make sense to include the 22-year-old Texas native in the relief corps for the sake of staying active, unless the Dodgers want to keep him stretched out on standby in the event of an injury to somebody already in the rotation.
Regardless, as reported by Ken Gurnick of MLB.com, Roberts certainly likes what he has been seeing from May so far during Summer Camp.
Gurnick also reported that May will continue to build his innings threshold.
In 2019, May went 6-5 with a 3.38 ERA and 110 punchouts over 106-2/3 innings of work between Double-A Tulsa and Oklahoma City before making his MLB debut in August. For the big league squad, he made 14 appearances, 10 of which came as a reliever. To the surprise of some pundits, he was selected to the NLDS roster against the Nationals and eventually made two more appearances out of the bullpen.
As stated by Roberts, May throws very hard. And he spins the ball extremely well. Last year, his arsenal of breaking pitches ranked him in the 99th percentile of all pitchers in the majors with regards to spin rate.
Here’s a look at the youngster’s arsenal:
Either way, as the Dodgers have been known to limit the innings of most of their young, budding pitchers in the past, this abbreviated 2020 campaign could allow the team to go full throttle with many arms on the staff.
Indeed, interesting times lie ahead as far as player personnel goes—if we actually make it through this strange, unprecedented season.
Think Blue Planning Committee 
I like the kid. With things the way they are, throw him into the mix right now. I like Strip as the long man. Gonsolin is not in camp, and I doubt he could be ramped up very fast. Alexander is a diabetic so it makes sense to me that he is not in camp at all.
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Do you have any Dustin May rookie cards?
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No I do not. Been filling in my missing 1960 Dodgers as of late. Even found a Gil Hodges card I had never seen before. Not an original, but it looks way better than the card they issued.
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Ok, I’ll get one out to you. I think I have a whole stack of Topps Regular, but I’m not sure if I have any Heritage or not.
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Thanks Dennis. I bought some of this years cards. I got a couple of Kershaw’s, and Tyler White…..put him in the bargain bin.
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Hang on to that Tyler White card Bear. We both know he’s going to be this year’s Dodger MVP. When he wins the award you can sell the card and we’ll split the profits.
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I’m gonna send you a Gavin Lux rookie card, too. It has a small corner blemish, though. I bought a small stack a while back that never checked out as NRMT+, but instead of paying postage to return them, the vendor just told me to keep them.
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I think Gonsolin and Strip are probably the two guys on the staff who can most easily swing back and forth between starting and relieving. If Gonsolin has tested positive and is still a week or so from coming back, he can start the season in the bullpen (assuming they put him on the 30 man altogether).
I’d really like to see Stripling get a chance as the 5th starter. He deserves it. His best year, 2018, was the year he made his most starts and also the year he made the All Star team. He just ran out of gas in the second half. That won’t be a problem this year since the season is less than 40% of a normal schedule.
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I do not think there is enough time to ramp Gonsolin up if he is not back in camp by the end of the week. Right now it is about 2 weeks until opening day. I like Strip too, but i am not so sure management has a whole lot of faith in him as a starter. Remember, he was traded. But the trade fell through. So they obviously felt they had enough depth to let him go. With Nelson and Price definitely not playing, it changes the dynamic a lot.
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Announced on the telecast tonight that Gonso has reported. It was only 3 innings of an intersquad game but it was sure nice to see. Another one tomorrow. Also televised.
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Dustin May is going to grab a starting spot sometime during the season and he won’t let it go! May, Urias and Buehler for years to come!
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I like your enthusiasm Rich. But I am not sold on Urias yet. I want to see the kid do it for a full year before I commit to his being an ace. I saw flashes, but I also saw inconsistency.
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Is it a bad omen that MLB released the 2021 schedule today?
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Urias has never had the opportunity to pitch consistently. I believe given that chance he could be a co ace with Buehler for years to come. He has the stuff and the makeup. I think he and Seager have huge summers! Can’t wait to see! And I live Rios as well. The kid can rake!
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