Trevor May steps away from baseball, but he still intends to be heard

This was the mid-1970s and a reasonably young and not-yet-sober sportswriter was having what remains a wondrous time covering the Twins on a daily basis.

Among the characters of that era was third baseman Eric Soderholm. We called him "Solid Sod," mostly because it had a rhythm, and not always the logic under which he operated.

One day came a report a Twins player had fallen in a concrete hole while looking at a property in Burnsville (I believe) and suffered broken ribs.

And a teammate said: "They could've said, 'One of the Twins fell in a hole and broke ribs,' and we all would've responded, "Did Sod get hurt bad?' "

Decades later, I can't be sure what Twins from the seven seasons from 2014 to 2020 were saying when discovering that a teammate had perhaps his best season and, at a time when relievers are valued more than ever, announced his retirement at age 34, but the guess would be this:

"So Trevor May's retiring, huh?"

There was this moment on Sept. 28, as the Twins were playing the last home game of the regular season. Lowly Oakland had taken a 2-1 lead and the Twins were coming up for the bottom of the ninth inning.

And here came Cory Provus to inform the radio audience that May was coming in, and then reeling off some spectacular statistics compiled by the Athletics closer over the second half of the schedule.

On Friday, May was on the phone and I said: "Trevor, I gotta admit that not much effort was put into inspecting A's boxscores this season. Provus shocked me with your numbers that last day in Minnesota."

May made a quick joke about interest in the A's in 2023, then said: "I was on a pretty good run after I came back from my break. Honestly, a big reason was that I had a good idea this was going to be it even before the season started. Seeing this as the final hurrah, the pressure was off."

May took a break from the A's on April 19 to deal with "anxiety" issues. "Behind the scenes, it was very tough," he said. "My wife Kate and I both were involved in talking with people. When that got addressed, and putting the light at the end of the tunnel for baseball … it was like playing on your birthday every day."

The Twins traded center fielder Ben Revere to Philadelphia before the 2012 season, acquiring May and veteran pitcher Van Worley. "The Vanimal" didn't exactly dazzle, but May stuck in the organization for nine years and had his moments.

And setbacks.

The Twins were planning on him for a bigger role in 2017 and he blew out his elbow (Tommy John surgery) in March. He didn't pitch again until June 2018.

He was outstanding in 2019 and a solid contributor during the shortened pandemic season in 2020. The Mets grabbed him as a free agent with a two-year, $15.5 million contract.

Through those Twins years, he dived into other areas;

First, as a well-known internet DJ in the world of electronic music. When younger, he was DJ HEYBEEP, and then became Mazer.

"That's what Ron Gardenhire called me as a rookie … 'Mazer,' " May said Friday. "I asked him once, 'Do you listen to our music?' Gardy gave me a strange look and I realized he was just putting 'ser' on the end of my name."

May's next celebrity with a youthful audience — and much larger — has been as a video game streamer on Twitch. He now has Trevor May Media, from his home near Seattle, and also podcasts, including his own: "I Am Trevor May."

His retirement announcement came with a blistering criticism of A's owner John Fisher.

"The A's fan base is much like the Twins' — close-knit, a community," said May, Oakland's highest-paid player this season at $7 million. "And this billionaire is making the decision to move to Las Vegas, and he won't talk to anyone. It is the height of arrogance, and somebody had to say something about him.

"That's kind of my personality, too. I'm a high-energy person, with a big curiosity … I've been that way since I was a kid. I cannonball into things."

Including retirement. At age 34. With 21 saves and a career-low ERA of 3.28 for a 50-win team.

Who would do that? Trevor May, of course.