Dustin May didn’t get the win on August 12 — Milwaukee’s bullpen took care of that — but he walked out of Petco Park with something more valuable: another start that confirms exactly why the Brewers went and got him at the trade deadline.
Seven innings, four hits, one run, two walks and six strikeouts against the San Diego Padres. Just 4 runs allowed in his last 4 starts. That’s not a fluke.
What the box score says — and what it doesn’t
The only damage on the day was a solo home run by Xander Bogaerts in the third inning. After that, May locked it down completely. Six strikeouts, two free passes, and contact that simply didn’t hurt him — which lines up perfectly with his 2026 Statcast profile: an average exit velocity allowed of 90.1 mph and a hard-hit rate of 45.7%. Those are the numbers of a pitcher who generates weak contact even when hitters put the ball in play.
The problem wasn’t May. In the eighth inning, the bullpen surrendered the lead and the game went to extras, where San Diego closed out a 4-3 sweep in eleven innings. It was Milwaukee’s seventh loss in eight games on the West Coast this year — a real headache for the best team in baseball. The Brewers finished the day at 74-47, still first in all of MLB.
Why his ERA with St. Louis wasn’t the right number to watch
When Milwaukee acquired May on August 3 — along with left-handed reliever Jo Jo Romero, both coming over from the St. Louis Cardinals — the reaction around the league was lukewarm. His ERA was hovering around 4.30 with St. Louis, and that doesn’t exactly scream postseason arm.
But the number that actually mattered was different. Between May 1 and July 29, May ranked eighth in the majors with a 2.88 FIP among starters with at least 70 innings pitched. That means he was pitching like one of the best starters in the game — the ERA just didn’t reflect it, thanks to a mix of bad luck and shaky defensive support behind him.
His .305 wOBA allowed and .311 xwOBA point in the same direction: a pitcher who controls contact, not one who suffers through it. The Brewers saw all of that when Brandon Woodruff landed on the injured list and they needed real rotation depth — not just a name to fill a spot. May told MLB.com he was «stoked» when he found out he was heading to the league leader. Hard to blame him.
Two starts, one clear trend
May’s Brewers debut came on August 6 against the Pittsburgh Pirates:
- 6 innings, 2 earned runs, 5 strikeouts — Milwaukee wins 5-2
- August 12 vs. San Diego: 7 innings, 1 earned run, 6 strikeouts — team loss
Combined in a Brewers uniform: 13 innings, 3 runs, 11 strikeouts. The trend is there.
Milwaukee owns the best record in MLB in 2026 and was the first team in franchise history to reach 70 wins at the pace they did it. They needed someone who could pitch in October, not just eat innings in August. So far, May is holding up his end. Now the bullpen needs to catch up.
