The Milwaukee Brewers won their first World Series in franchise history just over 24 hours ago, yet the offseason's first decision has already happened. Veteran pitcher Dustin May is reportedly declining the mutual option on his contract, according to Jon Heyman of the New York Post.

May joined the Brewers in a trade deadline deal with the St. Louis Cardinals that also included reliever JoJo Romero. After signing a one-year, $12.5 million contract with a $20 million mutual option for the 2027 season, May decided to decline the mutual option right after winning his fourth career World Series.

After spending the first five and a half seasons of his career with the Los Angeles Dodgers, May has bounced around, spending time with the Boston Red Sox and Cardinals before joining the Brewers. The 29-year-old hurler had a career year in many categories, setting career highs with 144 strikeouts, 145 2/3 innings pitched and 31 starts.

May made 21 starts with the Cardinals before being traded, posting a 4.38 ERA with a 7-9 record, but struggled more with the Brewers. The seven-year veteran posted a 5.65 ERA in 10 regular-season starts with Milwaukee, and he did not play much better in the postseason. Across five playoff appearances, including two starts, May struggled, allowing seven runs.

May's option was getting declined one way or another

It's somewhat surprising that May would decline the mutual option, especially this soon after the World Series, but realistically, Milwaukee was not going to accept the $20 million option. The Brewers traded for May in the hope he could be a reliable third starter for the postseason behind Jacob Misiorowski and Logan Henderson, but that's not how it played out. He was primarily used as a bullpen piece during the playoff run.

Despite struggling in the second half of the season, May still holds a 4.12 career ERA and is a four-time World Series champion, so he'll likely draw a decent amount of attention in free agency. According to Spotrac, the 29-year-old is projected to sign a contract worth roughly $15 million a year, but it will be interesting to see whether teams will be willing to give him a multi-year deal.

Though he had his share of struggles, May still contributed to making Brewers franchise history and helped bring the team its first championship. It will be interesting to see if he's willing to return in free agency.