One unintended consequence of baseball's pitch clock, at least for A's pitcher Trevor May, has been an uptick in his anxiety on the mound.
It got so bad for May, who is currently on the injured list with issues related to anxiety, that he said he considered retiring, according to the Mercury News.
May credits A's sports psychologist Ben Strack with talking him out of the idea, telling the News that Strack told him, "If you go home now and you're done with baseball, you'd still be you. You'd just be at home, you'd still have to deal with this. Then there'd probably be regret there. That'd pile on and be even worse."
Going on the IL for mental health issues has become a more accepted practice in baseball, with May being the third player to do so this season along with Rockies pitcher Daniel Bard and Tigers outfielder Austin Meadows.
May said he'd previously coped with anxiety on the mound by taking his time - stepping off the mound or taking a few deep breaths.
Now, with just 15 seconds between pitches, 20 with runners on base and only two step-offs allowed per batter, that isn't necessarily an option.
"Before, I had this big strong dude, a guard, and anxiety was trying to get in the doorway and the guard wouldn't let it," May said, per the News. "Now that anxiety is quick. The guard is too slow. The anxiety is just getting in there."
May's ERA has ballooned to 12.00 compared to a 3.83 career mark, and it's not clear when he'll come off the IL - though he has been back in the A's clubhouse since early May.
"What's going on? Nobody acknowledges [the pitch clock] or even notices it," May said. "You feel like, how does nobody notice that pitching is so much harder now."
The new rules are, in part, there to increase offense and excitement, and have largely been considered a success.
May's anxiety is reportedly also related to family matters, the specifics of which he declined to share with reporters.
But the adjustment to baseball's new reality has been an issue.
"We were told when we got up [to the majors], slow the game down, don't let the game speed up on you," May said. "Now the game is literally speeding up. We can't slow it down."