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Dave May
Dave May
Dave May
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David LaFrance May (December 23, 1943 – October 20, 2012) was an American professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball as an outfielder from 1967 through 1978 for the Baltimore Orioles, Milwaukee Brewers, Atlanta Braves, Texas Rangers and the Pittsburgh Pirates. May was a member of the AL pennant winning Orioles team in 1969 and, was an American League All-Star player with the Brewers in 1973. He was the father of MLB scout David May Jr. and MLB player Derrick May.[1]

Key Information

Biography

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A native of New Castle, Delaware, he graduated from William Penn High School.[2] He signed with the San Francisco Giants as an amateur free agent in 1961.[1] He batted left-handed and threw right-handed, and was listed as 5 feet 10 inches (1.78 m) tall and 186 pounds (84 kg). The only year he spent in the Giants organization was in 1962 with the Salem Rebels, in which he led the team with a .379 batting average.[3]

May appeared in his first Major League game with the Baltimore Orioles. During the time he was with Baltimore (1967–1970), he never had higher than a .242 batting average and 152 at bats. He was dealt from the Orioles to the Brewers for Dick Baney and Buzz Stephen before the trade deadline on June 15, 1970.[4] However, upon coming to the Brewers, he became an effective hitter. In his first full season in Milwaukee, 1971, May hit 16 home runs and had 65 RBI, and batted .277. After an off year in 1972, he rebounded to finish eighth in the MVP voting in 1973 with a .303 batting average, 25 home runs, and 93 RBI. He also led the league in total bases, and placed in second in hits. May is one of two Delawareans to make the All-Star Game. However, his production declined in 1974, so the Brewers traded him to the Atlanta Braves for Hank Aaron.

May was part of a five-for-one trade that sent him, Ken Henderson, Roger Moret, Adrian Devine, Carl Morton and $200,000 from the Braves to the Rangers for Jeff Burroughs on December 9, 1976.[5] May was traded back to Milwaukee at trade deadline in 1978 to help the team on a pennant push. As the Brewers faded, he was traded just before the August waiver wire deadline to the Pittsburgh Pirates.

May went to spring training with the Philadelphia Phillies and was their final cut before the 1979 season. He signed and played for Santo Domingo in the fledgling Inter-American League until it went defunct during the 1979 season. May then became a minor league coach, serving as a roving hitting instructor for the Atlanta Braves in 1981 and 1982

May was inducted into the Delaware Sports Museum and Hall of Fame in 1984.[6]

May died at age 68 in Bear, Delaware, on October 20, 2012.[2]

References

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Dave May

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Dave May (December 23, 1943 – October 20, 2010) was an American professional baseball outfielder known for his twelve-season Major League Baseball career from 1967 to 1978, during which he played for the Baltimore Orioles, Milwaukee Brewers, Atlanta Braves, Texas Rangers, and Pittsburgh Pirates. He earned an All-Star selection in 1973 with the Brewers, a season that represented the peak of his career, and is perhaps most famously remembered for being traded to the Atlanta Braves in the November 1974 deal that brought Hank Aaron to Milwaukee. Born in New Castle, Delaware, May graduated from William Penn High School and holds the state record for most MLB games played by a Delaware native, with 1,253 appearances across his career. He debuted with the Orioles in 1967, contributed to their 1969 pennant-winning team with a brief World Series appearance, and later enjoyed productive stints as a center fielder and occasional power hitter. His 1973 campaign with Milwaukee saw him hit .303 with 25 home runs, earning him co-MVP honors from the team and an eighth-place finish in AL MVP voting. Following his retirement from the majors, May briefly continued in professional and semipro baseball before returning to Delaware, where he worked in various roles including as a hitting instructor in the Braves' minor-league system and in recreational sports administration. He was inducted into the Delaware Sports Museum and Hall of Fame in 1984 and the Delaware Afro-American Sports Hall of Fame in 2004, recognizing his contributions to the sport and his status as one of the state's most accomplished baseball figures. May was also the father of major leaguer Derrick May.

Early Life

Birth and Family Background

David LaFrance May was born on December 23, 1943, in New Castle, Delaware. He was the fourth of nine children born to Sylvester May and Catherine (née Richardson) May. His father worked for an auto dealership and had played catcher as a teenager and boxed as an adult, while his mother worked as a custodian for the local school district and was known as a capable softball player. Sports played a significant role in the family's life, with several siblings showing athletic talent in baseball. Older brother Sylvester “Scrappy” May was a standout infielder in the Delaware Semi-Pro League, and Gilbert May was regarded as the family's best player before a hand injury ended his career. The family lived on Williams Street in New Castle, next to a firehouse. As a child, May practiced baseball by throwing tennis balls against the firehouse wall and catching the rebounds, sometimes late at night. May later resided in Bear, Delaware.

Upbringing in Delaware

Dave May spent his childhood in New Castle, Delaware, the same city where he was born. This geographic location in northern Delaware formed the setting for his early years. He played on his first organized team in the New Castle Little League (Buttonwood), pitching and playing third base, and later participated in Babe Ruth ball. At age 13, he began playing American Legion baseball with Lawrence Roberts Post, winning a state championship in 1961. May attended William Penn High School in New Castle, where he was a three-sport athlete and earned All-Blue Hen Conference honors as a third baseman in baseball and as a halfback in football. He received college football scholarship offers from Syracuse, Purdue, and Maryland but became scholastically ineligible for sports in his final year (1961–62). His upbringing remained tied to this Delaware community before his later professional pursuits.

Career

Professional Involvement in Film and Television

Dave May had no professional career in film or television production. His IMDb profile exists due to appearances as himself in sports-related television broadcasts tied to his career as a Major League Baseball outfielder, rather than any involvement in the entertainment industry. These credits are limited to archival or live appearances: he is listed as Self in the 1969 World Series (two episodes as Baltimore Orioles pinch hitter), the 1969 American League Championship Series (one episode), and the 1973 MLB All-Star Game (as AL outfielder). No credits exist for acting, directing, producing, cinematography, or any other crew or creative department in film or television. Born in 1943 in Delaware, his documented media presence aligns solely with his athletic career from the late 1960s to the 1970s, with no evidence of broader professional engagement in the field.

Personal Life

Residence and Later Years

In his later years, Dave May resided in Bear, Delaware, where he died on October 20, 2012. He married Maxine Hopkins in 1964, and they had three children: David Jr., Derrick (who played in Major League Baseball), and Denae. The couple divorced in 1983. Limited information is available on his personal hobbies. He was involved in community recreational sports administration after his playing career.

Death

Passing and Burial Details

Dave May died on October 20, 2012, in Bear, Delaware, at the age of 68. He died of complications from diabetes and cancer. As a long-time resident of the state, he passed away in the Delaware community where he had lived for many years.

Memorial and Obituaries

Following his death on October 20, 2012, Dave May's passing received limited public recognition, primarily through local Delaware sources rather than widespread national media coverage. A local obituary for David May Sr. appeared in The News Journal on October 24, 2012, listing survivors including his former spouse Maxine May, children David Jr., Derrick, and Denae, several sisters, eight grandchildren, two great-grandchildren, and a host of other relatives and friends. It announced funeral services at Mt. Sinai Missionary Baptist Church in New Castle, Delaware, with viewing from 10 a.m. to noon and services at noon on Thursday, followed by private interment. The obituary also provided an option to plant trees in his memory. Personal tributes appeared in the online guestbook associated with the obituary, where contributors shared memories of May's kindness, his Major League Baseball career, and his involvement in local Little League coaching in New Castle. A virtual memorial page on Find a Grave has accumulated over 55 virtual flowers from visitors since his death, including birthday tributes in recent years, though no physical burial site is noted as he was cremated with ashes given to family or friends. No extensive obituaries or organized public memorials in major publications were identified.
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