It’s been an interesting couple of years for Los Angeles Dodgers starting pitcher Dustin May because, before Tuesday, he’d not thrown a single pitch at the MLB level since May 17, 2023.

That’s due to several unfortunate injuries, undergoing Tommy John surgery in July of 2023, which also happened to be the second time in his career he’d needed the procedure.

Nearly a year later, on July 10, 2024, while rehabbing from surgery at Los Angeles’ Camelback Ranch Facility, he wound up tearing his esophagus while eating a salad, which caused him to miss the rest of the season.

Now, though, during the Dodgers’ matchup against the Atlanta Braves on Tuesday, May made his long-awaited return, with the team showing their support by saying, “Welcome back, Dustin!” via a social media post.

Welcome back, Dustin! pic.twitter.com/QndgY9HuAi

Welcome back, Dustin! pic.twitter.com/QndgY9HuAi

— Los Angeles Dodgers (@Dodgers) April 2, 2025

In his return, May put up some solid numbers, throwing five total innings, allowing one hit, zero runs, three walks and striking out six.

There’s now hope that he can return to being the same player who was impressive in limited time during the 2023 season, with nine starts, 48 innings pitched, 34 strikeouts, a 2.64 ERA, 165 ERA+ and a 0.938 WHIP.

There’s no doubt the Dodgers can use all the help possible as they enter the 2025 season with some lofty expectations, including having the best odds at winning the World Series (+250) per ESPN BET.