May finds return to normalcy in encouraging outing 

ST. LOUIS -- After a whirlwind pair of starts that saw Dustin May record just eight combined outs, the Cardinals right-hander came into Monday’s outing against the Brewers with a prescribed pitch count in the range of 65 to 75 pitches.

Though manager Oliver Marmol left some room for latitude pregame “based on what he communicates along the way,” the club wanted to be mindful of building May back to a standard workload given the sporadic game activity he had experienced in recent weeks.

So when Brewers third baseman David Hamilton poked May’s 81st pitch of the night through the right side of the infield in the top of the fifth inning, it was clear that May had fallen short of the last out he needed to qualify for the win, despite departing with a 2-0 lead.

Limitations on the Cardinal bullpen with a doubleheader looming Tuesday meant Marmol turning to names outside of his customary leverage relief shortlist to try and hold that lead.

The effort ultimately fell short, with the Cardinals dropping Monday’s affair to the Brewers, 4-3.

Justin Bruihl was charged with one run in Milwaukee’s four-run seventh. He left the game with a mild right ankle sprain that he suffered while trying to make a difficult play on a Garrett Mitchell infield hit.

The next relievers through the bullpen gate, Ryan Fernandez and Ryne Stanek, couldn’t smother the blaze. A two-run go-ahead single by Brice Turang put the Brewers ahead for good.

“We know it’s going to be tough with where our pitching’s at,” Marmol said. “We don’t have everybody available at the moment. Which, when you get late in the games, someone has to step up and get it done.

“Unfortunately, that’s just part of it as you get closer to the break. Guys are needing extra time to recover. So, we didn’t have our main guys at the back end, and we couldn’t close it out.”

Given the oddities associated with May’s recent game action, and despite the disappointing team result, it would be erroneous to label May’s 4 2/3 innings of scoreless baseball as anything other than successful.

“It was good to see him back out there and just feeling healthy,” Marmol said. “Everything was where you would want it to be.”

May’s last two previous starts, June 21 in Kansas City and July 2 in Atlanta, saw him throw just 44 and 34 pitches, respectively. He departed the start against the Royals after two innings, with the Cardinals later revealing that May had experienced back tightness in the game.

“The back thing, at the start, definitely did not feel good,” May reflected after Monday’s game. “That definitely put me behind the eight ball on feeling good.”

As a result, the team skipped his subsequent turn in the rotation. His next start came 11 days later in Atlanta; May didn’t escape the first inning. A comebacker off his right ankle left a contusion that ultimately contributed to his early hook. But the line score wasn’t exactly favorable, either.

The extra time between outings, which was necessitated by the back tightness, unfortunately worked against May from a sharpness standpoint.

“Just the time off, not being crisp, not facing hitters and then being a little juiced in Atlanta probably didn’t help,” May explained.

Suffice it to say, Monday marked a welcomed return to normalcy.

“It was good to get out there and not suck, so that definitely felt good,” May said. “Getting a clean first inning definitely gave me a little boost. Because I didn’t know if I was ever going to have another one after the last two.”

Setting aside navigating May’s status on Monday, Marmol has had to dig deep into his bullpen in recent days as he and his staff have steered the pitching plan toward Tuesday’s doubleheader.

For relievers like JoJo Romero and George Soriano, pitching Monday would have turned an appearance in either game of Tuesday’s doubleheader into a three appearances in four days situation -- not ideal with the respite of an All-Star break still another week away.

Entering Monday, both Romero and Soriano had pitched every other day dating back to June 26. Both were held back from game action in Monday’s loss.

“You always have in mind what’s next and you know this is going to be a tough stretch from a covering innings standpoint," Marmol said. “So, you’re making decisions yesterday and the day before based on availability today -- and then based on availability tomorrow -- in how you use [Matt] Svanson and some of the other guys leading into this series.

“Tomorrow, a couple more guys will be available to us, which is a good thing.”