The Los Angeles Dodgers are trading right-handed pitcher Dustin May to the Boston Red Sox, sources confirmed to The Athletic on Thursday. The club used its sudden surplus of starting pitching to reallocate resources, and the Red Sox, in need of rotation depth, pounced.
The Dodgers will receive James Tibbs III, part of Boston’s return in its June 15 trade of Rafael Devers to the San Francisco Giants.
The left-handed hitter became a top-10 prospect in Boston’s system, and hit .205 with a .589 OPS in 29 games for Double-A Portland, playing right field, left field, first base and DH. Before the trade, Tibbs had hit .246 with an .857 OPS for the Giants’ High-A affiliate. Tibbs was a first-round pick for San Francisco in 2024.
May, 27, is enjoying both the healthiest and least productive season of his major league career, posting a 4.85 ERA through his first 19 appearances while not missing a single turn through the team’s rotation in his return from his second major elbow surgery since 2021. His return, delayed in part due to a freak accident at dinner with his wife last July that resulted in an esophagus injury, has been perplexing.
His stuff remains elite, though diminished. His sweeper still spins like a whirling dervish. His sinker still tumbles like a bowling ball, though his average four-seam fastball velocity is just 95.5 mph compared to the 97.3 mph he averaged before his latest procedure.
May’s ineffectiveness, along with his impending free agency, made him an intriguing trade candidate. In the week leading up to this year’s deadline, Dodgers manager Dave Roberts was candid about May’s place: He’s fighting for a spot with right-hander Emmet Sheehan in a rotation that was expecting Blake Snell off the injured list.
“I think that’s fair and that’s honest so we’ll see,” Roberts said on Friday. “It’s up to them to go out there and pitch well and force our hand as far as decisions. Ultimately, players make the decisions for themselves, right? And that’s performance.”
The Dodgers’ decision appeared made even before May was moved. The trade deadline, and just about every contender’s need for starting pitching depth, provided an opportunity to extract some value.
Trade grade
Red Sox: C
Dodgers: B+
Tim Britton: May fits the back end of the Boston rotation but still leaves the Sox a starter short for an adequate postseason rotation, barring a renaissance from his former (and freshly current) teammate Walker Buehler. The good news is that May has made 18 starts this year; he had made 20 in the prior four seasons combined. Unfortunately, these 18 starts haven’t been as good as the ones he made in earlier years, especially when he was a promising young part of a title-winning staff in 2020. His strikeout rate is below league average, his walk rate above it, and his ERA comfortably in the high-fours. He’ll probably be better than Richard Fitts had been in the fifth spot, but the Sox were aiming higher.
In Tibbs, the Dodgers land an integral part of Boston’s return in last month’s Rafael Devers trade — the 13th overall pick in last summer’s draft. Tibbs had been promoted to Double A upon his arrival with the Red Sox and has struggled significantly at that level. Nevertheless, that’s good value for a rental back-end starter.
(Photo of May: Winslow Townson / Getty Images)
