Is this Marlins prospect rocking shades on the mound? Sort of

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. -- Leave it to South Florida’s unpredictable weather to make a fashion statement.

In an unusual sight -- pun intended -- Marlins pitching prospect Aiden May sported tinted eyewear during Thursday afternoon’s Spring Breakout game at CACTI Park of the Palm Beaches.

Since the surrounding skies fluctuated between sunny, cloudy and rain, May’s Oakley transition lenses looked like sunglasses while he tossed two scoreless innings.

Turns out May, whom Miami selected in the second round of the 2024 Draft, discovered at the Draft Combine that he needed corrective vision. He was too stubborn to do anything about it until this past offseason, which is so recent that he still doesn’t know his prescription strength or vision acuity.

“This is the first time of my life I've ever worn glasses,” May said. “I was ordering these this offseason because I need them bad. I can’t see. I thought transition lenses would be a nice touch, but it turns out not so much. They’re actually sunglasses, because it’s light out, but later in the day they get less bright. It’s not the most normal. But they’ve served me well so far, I guess.”

Miami’s No. 28 prospect isn’t the first pitcher to sport tinted lenses on the mound. Yankees left-hander Kei Igawa (2007-08) and Pirates right-hander Kent Tekulve (1974-89) wore sunglasses during their Major League careers.

“I've thought about contacts, but I don't know,” May said. “I kind of like the glasses look. Maybe I need to get some true glasses instead of the transition lenses. But I like them. I guess it's unique. We'll let it slide. I've noticed a lot of the Korean and Japanese pitchers that I've seen, they love pitching with sunglasses. So I guess we'll call that some influence from there, I suppose. Accidental influence.”

May, who turns 23 on April 22, permitted just one hit but needed to work around six walks while piggybacking right-hander Karson Milbrandt on Thursday. Though it didn’t look pretty, May was just happy to participate in the prospect showcase.

Due to surgery to remove loose bodies in his elbow, May didn’t make his professional debut until July 9, 2025. He would go on to pitch across three levels once he was healthy, earning Florida State League Pitcher of the Week at Single-A Jupiter and starting High-A Beloit’s first postseason game.

Like Milbrandt, May also participated at last year’s Arizona Fall League to get innings under his belt after so much missed time. In five AFL starts, he struck out 15 batters and walked eight over 15 1/3 frames.

“I’ve felt great so far,” May said. “Obviously, as we saw today, the feel’s not quite where we want it to be. The stuff was good. A few things just didn’t go my way. I’m working really hard to get back into that right feel of -- I know a lot of people call it ‘flow state’ -- where you’re just out there and you’re just pitching and you’re not thinking about a lot of stuff.

“I’m working really hard to get back to that. I feel really good, I feel healthy, which is honestly right now what I’m focused on. Last year, I didn’t break camp because of the injury, and so it’s just awesome that I get to participate in this game with all the guys instead of being in the dugout. That was the really cool part. It wasn't what I particularly wanted today, but there was a lot of stuff that I'm going to be taking from this to work on in the future.”