Los Angeles Dodgers manager, Dave Roberts, has accused San Diego Padres third baseman, Manny Machado, of throwing a baseball at him during Game 2 of the NLDS. This move has added to the escalating tension between the two teams as they strive to take a lead in the series. Roberts stated that the incident felt intentional and disrespectful, despite the throw being intercepted by a net. The incident was confirmed by other team members and the Dodgers submitted a video of the occurrence for Major League Baseball’s review.
Machado, formerly a player under Roberts for the Dodgers in 2018, confirmed that he did indeed throw the ball toward the Dodgers’ dugout. The strength in which he threw the ball became a point of contention between the two sides. This act of provocation led to a heated exchange between Machado and Dodgers’ pitcher, Jack Flaherty.
Flaherty was unsettled by Machado’s actions and expressed his disappointment, stating that such incidents should not happen off the field. The incident escalated when Flaherty confronted Machado over the throw, leading to a heated exchange. Flaherty admitted that the situation got out of hand and wished he would have handled it differently.
Dodgers’ infielder, Miguel Rojas, also expressed his irritation over Machado’s throw, stating that it showed disrespect towards the opposing team. He emphasized that such recklessness could escalate into harm, particularly if a ball were to go astray and hit someone in the face. Flaherty and Rojas were not the only ones upset over the incident; other players also expressed their dismay, adding to the already simmering tension between the teams.
Roberts clarified an earlier event in the game where Flaherty had hit Fernando Tatis Jr. with a pitch, stating that it was not intentional. He explained that it would not be logical for a player to intentionally put the lead-off man on base with strong players coming up after. This serves as an example of the high emotions during the game that likely contributed to the incident involving Machado.
The game was further dampened by unruly behavior from the fans, with an incident of Padres’ outfielder, Jurickson Profar, being targeted by a ball and trash raining on the field. Padres’ earlier mockery of Dodger fans, particularly after robbing a home run, had already ignited tensions. Roberts remarked that the Padres seemed to be thriving in the villainous role and feeding off it, setting the ground for an increasingly tense series.
