Locked On Cardinals - Daily Podcast On The St. Louis Cardinals - Dustin May Press Conference

Starting point is 00:00:00 The St. Louis Cardinals officially welcome Dustin May to the team today. You're going to hear from him on everything from why he chose the Cardinals to his arm health and regaining weight going into 2026. You are locked on Cardinals. Your daily St. Louis Cardinals podcast, part of the Locked on podcast network. Your team every day. Hey there, Cardinals fans. I'm J.D. Hafford, a former national radio sports anchor born and raised in St. Louis and a

Starting point is 00:00:31 lifetime Cardinals fan. Welcome to another episode of Locked on Cardinals. Part of the Lockdown Podcast Network, now the number one sports podcast network. Thank you to our every dayers for always being here. Welcome in to you if you are new. Hope you enjoy the content. This is a show serving Cardal Nation and giving you all the info about the birds on the bat. Today's episode brought to you by Fanduel.

Starting point is 00:00:50 If you want to be right in the middle of the action this season, you visit fandle.com and place your NFL live bets all season long. Today's show, we've got the latest news and notes from around Major League Baseball, some of them affecting what's going on with the Cardinals right now. why the Yankees drafted now former Cardinal pitcher K to Winquist in the Rule 5 draft. What's next for the Cardinals now that the Dustin May signing is done? But we are going to start with Big Red himself, as he's known. The introductory press conference for Dustin May was today.

Starting point is 00:01:21 And it wasn't a formal one at Bush Stadium or anything, but it was done over the internet, Zoom call style with Dustin joining the group of media. Heim Bloom was, you know, on the call as well. But Dustin was in his home. I believe it was Fort Worth, Texas is where he's at. And, you know, the St. Louis media got a chance to ask a number of different questions. Not only to May, but there's a few of them directed towards president of baseball operations, Heim Bloom, about anything and everything that's going on with the team right now.

Starting point is 00:01:53 But most of the questions circled around Dustin May's health. Duh, it is the biggest obstacle for May and the biggest. you know, red alert about what's going on with Dustin May, you know, the, the, if this contract is going to be successful for both parties, if this is going to work out for both of them, which they reiterated is, uh, what they want near the end of the press conference. They brought that out. The hope for both the Cardinals in May is that he's going to stay healthy, you know, that, that, that's the big red sign, the big red X or whatever.

Starting point is 00:02:31 that people are most concerned about. It's not that he's a crappy pitch or anything like that. Is he going to be healthy? Is he going to be okay? Is he going to be on the mound for him to make this worthwhile for everyone involved? Will he stay healthy? Will he pitch well and will it benefit both sides with the Cardinals winning more games and may resurrecting his once very promising career that has had to endure and overcome injury

Starting point is 00:02:56 after injury after injury since coming up to the big leagues in 2019? Two injuries that he dealt with last year on top of recovering from the surgery he had in 2024. Just a string of bad luck and bad things continued to happen to him last year. The first was that life-threatening freak accident that led to the esophagus tear. And then you had the neuritis that he experienced at the end of the season. So let's hear from Dustin May. A question was asked about what it said about his tough nifts, you know, having to go through all of those things and come out on the other.

Starting point is 00:03:31 side and land in St. Louis. Yeah, for me, I think it was just to not look too far down the tunnel. To just kind of live in like a little three-foot world is what I like to say. It's not try to step too far out because you don't know how far you're going to be able to go, not look too far behind because that's kind of in the past. So just kind of living in the present, living in like I said, my three-foot world and just trying to control what I control in the present. when asked about his preparation in getting ready for this upcoming spring after all he went through, this is how he responded to that particular question. For me, the biggest thing was just trying to get my weight back on and build my strength back to

Starting point is 00:04:14 what I was before my esophagus tear. I was very lucky and fortunate to be able to even get into a situation to be able to pitch last year because whenever I did rupture my esophagus and came out of the hospital, I really didn't know if I was ever going to be able to throw a baseball again. So I was definitely very lucky and blessed to be able to do that, whether it was at my full potential or just what I went through last year, which was not what I thought that the type of pitcher that I am. So just to be able to put on a uniform last year and do it, it was great. But now that I'm back to hopefully who I was before with weight and strength-wise, I hope, I'm hoping that there are bigger and better things

Starting point is 00:04:57 to come. which, you know, you hear that. And, you know, I brought this up. I don't know, was it yesterday the day before I forget. They all kind of run together after a while. But how he's kind of been humbled a little bit by that scare and how he's learned to appreciate things a little bit more. You know, when you come up and you're super talented and everybody's praising your name

Starting point is 00:05:18 and telling you how good you are and how good you're going to be and you're the next big thing. And then, you know, you just kind of, life seems to be pretty easy. and yeah, he's had to deal with the surgeries and stuff like that, which, you know, are obviously an issue and are a complete bummer to a young man. But you're talking about life-threatening stuff now, not just, you know, hey, I got to wait a few months to throw baseball again. No, you're talking about I'm at a loss my life. And it's kind of nice to hear him at the age of 28 speak as mature as he does about what that's done. to him. So, uh, kudos to him. Uh, they also asked him about his weight and he laughed a little bit saying,

Starting point is 00:06:02 because remember it was like reported that he was 180. He was listed as 180. If you go to like baseball reference or any of the media guides, 180 is what he's listed at his last year. Uh, and he's, he's kind of laughed. It was like, yeah, I haven't been 180 since maybe 18 years old. Uh, said he played at about 198 to 202 last year. He said he's already up to 220 is open to reach 225 by spring training. So, uh, appears to be moving right along with getting his strength and, you know, his, his, just, I don't want to say girth. That's not a really good word. It makes me sound like he's a big fat guy or something like that.

Starting point is 00:06:36 But no, just to get his weight back and get his body back to where it needs to be by the time spring training comes around. Then, of course, he had the neuritis, the nerve issue that he dealt with at the end of last season, ended his season prematurely after getting traded to the Red Sox. And he was asked about that and how disappointing it was to miss the point. postseason, and here's how we responded to that particular question. Yeah, yeah, I definitely was. No, it's nothing that I have experienced in the past. My nerves always been fine in the past. It was just something that they said it probably just happened because of use. It was kind of

Starting point is 00:07:13 probably just like a body shock, and my body was probably just kind of getting to, or my elbow was probably just trying to get into it, kind of getting into a point to where it was like, all right, this is good for now. And then it took about a week off for, throwing and calm down, went away, and ramped back up trying to get ready for the postseason. And then, like I said, if we would have advanced to the DS, I would have, I would have been ready. And obviously, that's good news, that this isn't something that lingered, you know, they got past it pretty quickly. And if the socks had gotten past the Yankees, he was going to be available to pitch. And unfortunately for him and Boston, the Yankees knocked them.

Starting point is 00:07:56 out. So he was also asked about how he's feeling now, and this is how he replied going into spring training. Arm feels great. Back to normal. As I've reiterated to a lot of people, I was, I was going to be ready for the DS if we had advanced. So I was, Arm was in a better spot towards that time. But yeah, I'm definitely in a better spot now. I took some time off after that and definitely got the body right and I'm in a good a good physical space right now. So definitely looking forward to this year in spring training. He was also asked about being the veteran of what is a young group of pitchers. You know, normally he's been the younger guy that's in the rotation and it's time with L.A. and then with Boston as well. So his thoughts on that. Yeah, I definitely think it'll be

Starting point is 00:08:45 something new for me. Being from the Dodgers, I got a lot of experience from a lot of veteran guys going over to Boston, it was kind of a little bit of a magepage, and I was kind of right in there in the middle. But I definitely will enjoy going to this young pitching staff and kind of using my experiences that I've had in the past to kind of help guys kind of walk through some things if they see fit to come to me and ask, or I can go and try and help lead them away or lead them the right way through things and try and guide them the way that, that I was guided when I was younger. So definitely we'll be excited to use those experiences for that. So you got some good answers. You've got some honest answers about some pretty important things.

Starting point is 00:09:34 And I'm sure that a lot of fans had questions about it. Like, well, is he any good right now? Like, I was his arm and stuff. And, you know, he's not going to come on there and go, yeah, you know, it sucks. Doesn't feel real good right now. It sounds to me like he's excited about this opportunity. another change of scenery. Sounds like he's healthy,

Starting point is 00:09:51 ready to rock when spring training rolls around. I like the fact that it's a new experience for him, too. He was only with the Red Sox for a couple months there. And it was certainly a hectic time because you get traded at the trade deadline. You got to switch coasts. You got to go from the West Coast to the East Coast, which is, you know, a crazy difference. And then you get this neuritis thing that pops up out of nowhere

Starting point is 00:10:14 that he's never dealt with. And at least now, he can take a breath, right? Mentally prepare for living in the Midwest, in St. Louis, come in with a clean bell of health for once, have a chip on his shoulder a little bit, something to prove after the down year last year and all the injuries he had to go through and has a chance to be the main cog of a young team

Starting point is 00:10:36 that is trying to prove people wrong about that. He's right in a group of people who, you know, the cardals are looking to try and prove that just because they are inexperienced and because they are young, it doesn't necessarily mean that they're going to suck, you know, people, let's see that like, you don't really have any stars on your team right now. You're trying to trade away some of the bigger names that you got, probably not going to be very good. Yes, an experience, but also a lot of unknown about what certain guys are going to be and how good they're going to be,

Starting point is 00:11:13 are certain players going to take a step and progress? I mean, why is it that everybody's going to be exactly the same as they were last year or regress? Why can't some of these guys get better? So a lot of unknown to what the Cardinals are going to do, and it's unknown on whether or not Doste Mae is going to be healthy to lead them in this rotation this year. But it was a good press conference.

Starting point is 00:11:34 There were also some questions directed towards High Bloom as well, pertaining to Dust of May, why they targeted him in free agency and such. So I'm going to play those for you coming up next on Locked on Cardinals. NFL Sundays move fast, one big play, and suddenly everything feels different. That's why live betting with Fandall is as exciting as it is. If you haven't done it yet, you are missing out because you're not just watching the game, guys. You're reacting to it in real time. With Fandle, you can play spats as the action unfolds.

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Starting point is 00:12:42 They had flight delays to get to Seattle. Playing conditions are going to be a mess tonight. Nope, they don't sound like they're going to be all that good for throwing the ball, which is what the Rams do best. It's going to be interesting to see how that affects things for Matthew Stafford and company. And Seattle is just a really solid team all around. And they've got some great pieces as well. Jackson Smith and Jigba.

Starting point is 00:13:05 They've got a decent running game. Like it should be, I'm not expecting a lot of high scoring, but it should be an entertaining game for sure. If you want to be right in the middle of the action for tonight and the rest of the season, visit fando.com, place your NFL live bets all season long. Fandle, the game moves fast and so can you. Thanks for making Locked on Cardinals, your first listen of the day. Thank you for making Locked on the number one sports podcast network.

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Starting point is 00:13:46 if you want to go all in that way, but $5 a month, go to locked on scel cardinals.com or check the link in the show notes to learn more. So it wasn't just Dustin May that was fielding questions today. Heim Bloom had a couple of them tossed his way as well from today's press conference with Dustin May being introduced. By the way, he's going to wear number three. Number 85 was the number he had been wearing. Didn't think any other team would ever have that problem.

Starting point is 00:14:14 problem with the Cardinals is that is already retired. So 85, 8 minus 5 equals 3. Dustin, Dustin May is going to wear number three. So do with that knowledge, which you will. But Heim Blum had this to say when talking about why the Cardinals, like May,

Starting point is 00:14:31 as a fit with them in this particular season. We're really excited at what he brings to the table and the upside of this partnership. His youth and talent and also, the experience, the things that he's been through and the chance to have a runway with us a little over a year removed from, you know, some pretty wild stuff on the injury and medical front. And as he continues his career, we're really excited for him to be able to do that here and look forward to partnering with him to get the most out of him and position him for success so he can help us win. Had to use the word runway in there, didn't they? I thought

Starting point is 00:15:11 we were going to retire that particular word. Heim also asked how he viewed his rotation depth with the addition of May and whether or not there's still an addition he can make or are they comfortable with the way things are heading into spring training. Obviously, we're happy to be deeper now with Dustin on board, but we're still going to be on the lookout for more. When that happens, who it is, whether it's by a free agency trade, I don't know, but we still want to make sure we're insulated. for the season and that, you know, especially as we continue to hunt opportunities to add young talent to this core, that's not going to stop. We're going to keep doing that. And hopefully there are opportunities that line up for us as we go through the off season. So maybe they're done. Maybe they're not. They're always going to be looking, always hunting, always, you know, sneaking around,

Starting point is 00:16:07 seeing what else they can do to improve the team, which is what they're supposed to do each and every year. But what are these opportunities that he speaks of? Well, John Denton, who covers the Cardinals for MLB.com, wrote a piece today mentioning that the reason why this presser was pushed out a little bit, four days to be exact, is because the club hoped to potentially execute any of the other half dozen trades that they have discussed with interested teams about Brendan Donovan, Jojo Romero, Nolan Aronado, and Wilson Contreras. Other players such as Nolan, Lars Neupar, or Pedro Pahez could also be on the move with the cards embarking on a rebate. Now, none of that really comes all that, you know, comes at us all that shocking. You know, these are names that we've been talking about for a while now. The athletics Ken Rosenthal also chimed in on the Cardinals in his latest piece, saying the most active seller in the trade market, the St. Louis Cardinals,

Starting point is 00:17:00 continue to discuss a wide range of players, including infield or outfielder, Brennan Donovan, outfielders-Lars-Lars-Newpar, first-baseman Wilson Contreras, third-Basman, Nolan Aronado, and lefty reliever, Jojo Romero, as reported previously by the athletic, the Seattle Mariners are a favorite for Donovan and the Los Angeles Dodgers are among the teams interested in Lars Newpar. Aronado meanwhile is a possibility for the Los Angeles Angels who are negotiating a buyout agreement with third baseman Anthony Rendon. No trade is imminent, however.

Starting point is 00:17:32 The market for Aronado will become better defined after Bregman and Eugenio-Swaras sign their free agent deals. Aronado, who turns 35 in April, is under contract for two more. years. His former team, the Rockies, are paying $5 million of his $27 million salary in 26, which includes $6 million deferred. He also is owed $15 million in 2027.

Starting point is 00:17:53 What's a little wild to me is when you hear about all these names and stuff is that a team with so many players that it looks like other teams covet around the league, for whatever reason, they couldn't win together as a group. And that's a shame, really. And I'm not trying to open the door to

Starting point is 00:18:11 like blaming Ollie or any of the coaching staff or whatever. It's just it's kind of a bummer, right? You know, you've got good pieces here that people want. There's stuff about these guys that people want to get their hands on for their teams. But as a group, they just couldn't do it. They just didn't mesh. Maybe it's not so much the offensive players that maybe it's because we didn't have enough pitching all the time.

Starting point is 00:18:35 We can point at that too. But it's just kind of a bummer, right? And, you know, as Cardinal fans, we're not used to this. we're not used to this where we're, you know, we're tearing a team down. And, you know, what I'm excited about is that, you know, at least there feels to be, there seems to be like a floor of prospects that are that are very close to doing some really good things for this organization. 26 doesn't feel like that's going to be the year.

Starting point is 00:19:02 But 27 doesn't feel like it should be that bad. 28 could be incredible, right? But being patient and waiting for stuff like that, it's not really as a human. and something we're all good at anymore. Most of that stuff that we heard about Aronado, you know, I've said on here before. It's just common sense, really, that Aronado's market, the talks about him are going to wait until the bigger pieces,

Starting point is 00:19:29 find homes first. You know, we had to wait on Alex Bregman last year. And here we are doing it again. Because Aronado's not as good as him, you know. I've also seen a lot of discussion between fans about, You know, the worth of guys like Newpar and Pahez and Gorman. It's kind of cool that, you know, apparently there's been some interest in them. New part of the Dodgers, I mean, sure.

Starting point is 00:19:53 They've got some prospects that they've always had a good farm system. So maybe you can peel something away from them. We'll see. I don't know what Pahas and Gorman's worth is out there. I really don't. Pah has obviously a pretty good guy behind the plate, not much of a hitter. But if a team is, you know, looking for somebody who's just more defensive-minded than sure.

Starting point is 00:20:16 Cardinals have a surplus of catchers in their system right now. So that makes sense. Noah Gorman, you know the struggles he's had. People are still probably looking at that like, but look at that power. But I don't know what his work is. It can't be that high, can it? I've seen discussions about Donovan, you know,

Starting point is 00:20:34 namely it's Mariners and Giants fans that are out there going back and forth about it. Some Guardians chatter popped up today as well. so we'll see what becomes of that. I feel like, you know, when you talk about who's Donovan worth more to, I feel like he's worth more to the Mariners. Like that, and I feel like that's why things are leaning towards something getting done with Seattle. You know, they're in a championship window right now.

Starting point is 00:20:58 They were so close to getting there last year. And I was rooting for like Seattle was a team that I wanted to see them, you know, but no offense to the Toronto Blue Jays, but I don't know. I just, I just kind of was drawn to the Mariners. thought they were a fun team to watch. Not that the Blue Jays weren't, but that's just where I was. And they're in a championship window right now. So close to getting there and to find a piece that might get them that much closer

Starting point is 00:21:24 after losing Polanco, who was a big piece of that run they went on, it might be so enticing that maybe they are willing to part with better prospects to get them. Maybe they will overpay to go get him. Giants seem to want him, but he's not exactly a need in my mind. eyes because they're not you know donovan's not going to push them over the finish line to get them to the world series is he so i wouldn't expect them to offer quite as much as seattle my uh guardians who knows they surprised a lot of us this year just being where they were every year it seems like they're not supposed to be that great and there they are and donnie sure feels like a guardians type

Starting point is 00:22:03 of player doesn't he i feel like he would fit seamlessly in that cleveland locker room so that one makes sense to me. MLB news and notes next, including why do the Yankees steal our buddy Kate Winquist in the Rule 5 draft, you jerks? I'm kidding, sort of. We'll talk about it next on Locktown Cardinals.

Starting point is 00:22:31 Did Lockton Cardinals make your Spotify wrapped? Well, prove it on social media to secure a free month of our brand new Everydayer Club. Just tag our National Locktown Podcast Network account on any social platform. And we're going to drop you a code and you can be one of the first to join the Everydayer Club

Starting point is 00:22:44 to get your favorite show, add free and exclusive access to the members-only Discord channel, which is a lot of fun to jump into if you haven't done that already. So the Yankees took our guy. They hadn't made a rule five picks since 2011. And this year they decided, you know what? We're going to break the streak. We're going to take Kate Winquist from the Cardinals,

Starting point is 00:23:04 who we've had on this show, who was a great young man, seemed super awesome. And I'm so bummed that he's not going to be with us anymore. I don't recall ever seeing anyone bring them up either. when we were talking about Rule 5 draft fix and who might get taken from the Cardinals. I don't remember his name ever being brought up as being in danger of being selected. It was always Pete Hanson, right? Now Winquist is a Yankee.

Starting point is 00:23:28 So why did they take him? What was it about him that they like so much? Brian Hotch at MLB.com wrote a piece saying, according to assistant GM, Michael Fishman, the Yankees had kept a close eye on Winquist since his days at the University of Texas at Arlington, where he put down the bat and became a full-time pitcher. Fishman said that Winquist was next on the club's board after taking Cam Schlittler in the seventh round of the 2022 MLB draft. Didn't get a chance to take him because the Cardinals grabbed him in the eighth round,

Starting point is 00:23:58 three picks ahead of New York. Fishman said he's got big velocity. He has characteristics that our pitching group is good at working with. We'll get him with our pitching department and make a few tweaks. He's somebody who hopefully could help us. he's so good that the Yankees took him and Cardinals were unable to protect him because they didn't have enough spots. As a rule five pick, remember he's got to stay on the Yankees 26 man roster all season or be offered back to the Cardinals for half of his $100,000 selection price, which if he gets offered back, I would assume the Cardinals would take him for $50,000, especially with the upside he has shown.

Starting point is 00:24:41 over the last couple seasons. All right, finally some news and notes about the second base market outside of Donovan, but kind of affects Donovan. Nicol Horner trade talks apparently are real, but listed as unlikely. But the Giants are a team that have checked in on him, according to the San Francisco Chronicle Susan Slusser. They are also apparently interested in Brandon Lau of the Rays. Again, I hope the Cardinals aren't running out of suitors for Donnie if they still plan to move him. You know, it's part of the Part of the game, though, right? Like, you know, there's a certain point where you got to eventually pull the trigger on a deal,

Starting point is 00:25:17 or you risk scaring guys away, and then nothing happens. And everybody just goes back to where they wore and the, you know, the Giants and the Mariners and these guys go find other options. So you don't want to push them to that level and scare them off. But at the same time, you want to make sure that you weren't settling. Like, you aren't just like, okay, I guess. Like, don't know. Don't just make the deal to make the deal. go get the guys you want.

Starting point is 00:25:42 And if they don't offer those, then say no. We're not going to do that right now. And continue to hold the leverage and the power in this situation. So don't just settle. And it doesn't seem like Heinblum is doing that at least not yet. So I feel like that's good news that he's, you know, he's being tough about what he's going to get in return for Brendan Donovan. So any better because if they don't get what everybody's been chatting about and what's expected, you know, a lot of people have been talking about, I should say a lot of people,

Starting point is 00:26:13 but some of the, the talk has been about, you know, some of the top 10 guys, like, you know, a couple of them in the, in the Mariners stockpile of prospects. You know, we've brought up the number three, the Laas Montez, the big, the big slugger left tanner, but what about the guys above him? Like, even those names have been brought up. And finally, the Cattel Marte talks continue, but Ken Rosenthal said that perhaps the Diamondbacks don't even trade him. They don't get what they want. And so they don't trade them and instead go and get Alex Bregman instead. What?

Starting point is 00:26:47 You imagine that Breggman, Marte, Corbett, Carol, Geraldo Perdomo. I mean, that's a nasty group of hitters right there. You would still need pitching in my eyes. I don't feel like Arizona's got enough of that. But then you could add somebody like, you know, a Paul Goldschmidt to go play at first base. A little veteran presence wouldn't be that expensive. but that would obviously take Aranao out of the possibility of going to Arizona as well

Starting point is 00:27:12 and perhaps playing with Goldie again if he ends up going back to Arizona. So I don't know. It's just a lot of things circling right now. And we'll see if it gets done before Christmas. I don't know. Again, I'm prepared to see this thing dragged out a little bit longer, but we'll see what happens. Thanks for making lots on Cardinals for first to listen every day.

Starting point is 00:27:33 If you haven't already give us a follow on to accent, L0 underscore Cardinals, and a JD Sports Radio. We're on TikTok. We're on Instagram at Lockdown Cardinals. Like, subscribe on YouTube. If you haven't already, you can help our channel and love for the Cardinals grow.

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Locked On Cardinals - Daily Podcast On The St. Louis Cardinals - Dustin May Press Conference

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