OAKLAND -- After nearly a decade of living out his childhood dream as a Major League pitcher, Trevor May?is calling it a career.

May, 34, was set to hit free agency this offseason following one of the most successful seasons of his career with the A¡¯s. Instead, the right-hander has elected to retire from professional baseball.

¡°I am officially announcing my retirement from professional baseball,¡± May said on Monday during a live stream on his Twitch channel. ¡°I am no longer playing baseball. ... I am happy.¡±

May, a fourth-round pick of the Twins in the 2008 MLB Draft, was utilized as a starting pitcher early on with Minnesota before transitioning to the bullpen. He had Tommy John surgery in 2017, and carved out a quality role as a high-leverage reliever upon his return, producing a 3.49 ERA with 306 strikeouts in 247 1/3 innings through 256 games from 2018-23.

In a 2023 campaign that will end up being his final Major League season, May signed a one-year deal with the A's and achieved a longtime goal of performing in a closer role for the first time in his career.

May responded with a 3.28 ERA in 49 relief appearances and notched a career-high 21 saves, none more special than his save against the Mariners on Aug. 29 at T-Mobile Park, the stadium he grew up frequenting as a kid growing up in Washington.

¡°I chose the A¡¯s this year, because I wanted to make meaningful connections with my teammates and fans in the game, and not worry about everything being under a microscope,¡± May said. ¡°I think I got everything I wanted out of this year, and more. I loved those guys in the clubhouse. I love the A¡¯s organization. I love the people that I met and got to hang out with. ... It was really awesome.¡±

Across nine big league seasons with the Twins, Mets and A¡¯s, May posted a 4.24 ERA in 358 games with 520 strikeouts over 450 1/3 innings.

¡°I just want to go out on my own terms,¡± May said. ¡°A vast majority of guys retire because the game is saying you¡¯re not good enough to play anymore. Watching yourself slowly decline until you¡¯re fighting just to be relevant and have a job sounds awful, especially when I enjoy all the other stuff so much more.¡±

While May will no longer pitch professionally, he still has a desire to remain heavily involved with the game of baseball in a number of ways. One avenue is his baseball channel on YouTube, as well an upcoming opportunity to cover the MLB playoffs on SiriusXM radio.

¡°I love talking pitching. I love teaching people about the game of baseball,¡± May said. ¡°I¡¯m probably going to start my own show covering the game, because I love baseball. ... This is not the end of my relationship with baseball.

"If anything, I¡¯m going to do more stuff now with the game.¡±