Spring Training Recap: Dodgers Prospect Gavin Stone Impresses, But Dustin May & Jimmy Nelson Struggle In Loss To A’s

Dustin May wasn’t particularly sharp, Jimmy Nelson struggled once again and the Los Angeles Dodgers didn’t have their first hit until the fifth inning of a 6-3 loss to the Oakland Athletics.

The plan was for May to complete five innings, but he fell one short of that due to a high pitch count. Max Muncy didn’t help May’s cause as he was unable to make a play at third base on the second batter of the game, and Shea Langeliers followed that with a two-run homer.

A single and two walks loaded the bases with one out in the second inning but May managed to escape the threat without the Dodgers’ deficit increasing. He stranded another walk in the third and retired the side in order in the fourth inning, then exiting at 72 pitches.

Dodgers assistant pitching coach Connor McGuiness told Kirsten Watson during an in-game interview that May was not feeling 100% on Sunday, which the team believed was due to eating something that upset his stomach.

May came out of the game with the Dodgers trailing 2-1, with their only run to that point coming on Freddie Freeman’s sacrifice fly with the bases loaded. Freeman went 1-for-2 with a strikeout in his second consecutive start since returning to the Dodgers lineup after suffering a minor right hamstring injury in the World Baseball Classic.

Jimmy Nelson’s ongoing struggles this spring remained present as he threw 12 consecutive balls. The A’s loaded the bases during that stretch on a pair of walks and one hit batter. A wild pitch from Nelson allowed a run to score, and he issued a third walk prior to coming out of the game without retiring a batter.

Nelson has walked seven of nine batters faced and hit one in his past two relief appearances. Overall this spring, the right-hander has walked 11 of 21 batters.

Dodgers prospects contribute

Offensively, the Dodgers managed just five hits. Their first was Patrick Mazeika’s one-out double in the fifth inning that didn’t amount to anything.

Walks by Miguel Vargas and Steven Duggar led to a run in the seventh inning when 2022 MLB Draft pick Dalton Rushing dropped a two-out RBI single into left field. The at-bat was Rushing’s Cactus League debut.

Fellow Dodgers prospect Gavin Stone also had a noteworthy afternoon as he struck out eight batters over three scoreless innings.