On Friday night, Boston Red Sox second baseman Dustin Pedroia suffered knee and ankle injuries after getting spiked by Baltimore Orioles star Manny Machado on a slide at second base:
You can see in the video that Machado’s spikes went high on the slide. Naturally, the Red Sox are left viewing the play as dirty and intentional, because that’s what teams do when they’re on the wrong side of those things. And maybe it was intentional, but Machado was adamant with his claim it was unintentional in the postgame:
MM: "It wasn’t intentional- just look at the replay. You guys will see it. Me and Pedey go back. I would never want to hurt a guy like that"
— Brittany Ghiroli (@Britt_Ghiroli) April 22, 2017
Fast-forward to Sunday’s Red Sox-Orioles series finale. Pedroia missed his second consecutive game with his leg injuries, and it was reported earlier in the day that he would receive an MRI for the injuries on Monday:
Pedroia will undergo further imaging on his left knee and ankle Monday in Boston. The swelling and soreness haven't alleviated as expected.
— Brian MacPherson (@brianmacp) April 23, 2017
So, the Red Sox are likely even more frustrated now.
And in the bottom of the eighth of Sunday’s game, Red Sox reliever Matt Barnes threw and up-and-in fastball that just missed Machado’s head. It hit Machado’s bat for a foul ball, but Barnes was ejected, as anyone watching the game assumed the pitch was very intentional, and very dangerous:
STOP. INTENTIONALLY. THROWING. AT. PEOPLE. pic.twitter.com/3anXLWo9k2
— Justin Russo (@FlyByKnite) April 23, 2017
The most interesting part of the situation was Pedroia telling Machado from the dugout that he didn’t ask for that pitch:
Fascinating exchange captured by MASN between Machado and Pedroia. Dustin clearly saying "It wasn't me. I know that and you know that." pic.twitter.com/oqdt827ER9
— Dave Tucker (@TestudoDave) April 23, 2017
After the game, Pedroia called throwing at Machado a “mishandled situation” and said, “that’s not how you do that.” He also said that there was “zero intention of [Machado}” trying to hurt him:
Pedroia: "That's not how you do that. I'm sorry to him and his team. I love Manny Machado. That's a mishandled situation."
— Brian MacPherson (@brianmacp) April 23, 2017
Dustin Pedroia's full thoughts: pic.twitter.com/CD1m40xlKa
— Brian MacPherson (@brianmacp) April 23, 2017
Machado also responded to Pedroia’s comments:
Machado on Pedroia saying "was mishandled situation" – "I'm going to respect Petey and look up to him. He shot me a text."
— Steve Melewski (@masnSteve) April 23, 2017
As you’d expect, Barnes said that the pitch got away from him, but few people are buying that.
hopefully, no one believes him. as for his ban, they should add a few games for lying about it. https://t.co/bj3T21IpOb
— Jon Heyman (@JonHeyman) April 23, 2017
as much as i disliked machado's slide yesterday, barnes' head-hunting is inexcusable
— Jon Heyman (@JonHeyman) April 23, 2017
The fact that the ball hit Machado’s bat shouldn’t change a thing with how that pitch is viewed, as it could’ve easily hit Machado in the head. It will be interesting to see how MLB responds to this. Head-hunting needs to stop already.
[Photo Credit: NESN; MLB]