By Fabian Ardaya, Andy McCullough and Ken Rosenthal
SAN DIEGO — Los Angeles Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said Monday he thought San Diego Padres third baseman Manny Machado threw a baseball at him between innings of Game 2 of the NLDS, adding yet another layer to an emotion-filled debacle in San Diego’s victory to even the series at 1-1.
Roberts, who said he noticed Machado’s throw after observing the video, called the All-Star third baseman’s actions “unsettling.”
“There was intent behind it,” Roberts said. “It didn’t almost hit me because there was a net. And that was very bothersome. If it was intended at me, I would be very —it’s pretty disrespectful.
“I don’t know his intent. I don’t want to speak for him. But I did see the video. And the ball was directed at me with something behind it.”
A person in the Dodgers dugout confirmed on Monday that Machado’s throw went toward the end of the dugout closest to home plate, where Roberts sits during games. The Athletic observed a video that showed Machado’s throw hitting the netting in front of Roberts and caroming toward home plate. In the video, umpire Tripp Gibson approaches Machado moments later.
The Dodgers have submitted the video to Major League Baseball for review.
“We are aware of it,” Dodgers president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman told The Athletic. “We will reserve comment until that is done.”
Dave Roberts said he saw video of Manny Machado throwing a ball into the Dodgers dugout between innings and in his direction. Called it “unsettling” and “disrespectful.”
— Fabian Ardaya (@FabianArdaya) October 7, 2024
Machado, who played for Roberts and the Dodgers in 2018, told The Athletic on Sunday night he did indeed throw a baseball toward the Dodgers dugout. How hard he threw it was up for dispute between the two sides.
“Did Flaherty throw the ball hard at the other guy?” Machado told The Athletic, alluding to Dodgers starting pitcher Jack Flaherty hitting Fernando Tatis Jr. with a pitch the previous half-inning. “They can say whatever they want. I threw the ball like I always throw it into any dugout.”
Flaherty, who had just been removed from the game, took exception to the throw, engaging in a shouting match with Machado that had started when Flaherty struck out Machado the previous half-inning.
“I think things got out of hand there,” Flaherty said Monday. “After that happens and he throws the ball, I wish I would’ve just let it go … that’s not how you want things to go. You want to keep it on the field and focus on the game. … Things were said. It was hard to hear.”
Did Machado’s throw cross a line?
“It’s not a normal thing to do,” Flaherty said. He said he had “no idea” if he would talk to Machado before Game 3 on Tuesday in San Diego.
“Things probably got a little chippier than expected, quickly,” Flaherty said of the series.
Flaherty, however, was hardly the only person in the Dodgers dugout to be irritated on Sunday night by Machado’s throw.
“You disrespect the opposite team,” infielder Miguel Rojas said. “There’s no reason why you need to chuck the ball into our dugout. If he wants to do something, there are other ways. Chucking the ball into our dugout is pretty disrespectful. That’s something you don’t do when you call yourself a veteran in this game and have been around for a long time.
“You don’t see guys throwing a bat into the dugout or a ball, something like that when no one is watching. How about if that ball gets over the dugout and hits someone in the face? That’s going to be a problem.”
Flaherty insisted that the apparent inciting incident — hitting Tatis Jr., who homered in the first inning — with a pitch to lead off the sixth was unintentional. Roberts said that as Machado jawed at Flaherty immediately after, the manager looked at Machado and shook his head to indicate it was not done on purpose.
“As a baseball person, anyone understands that you don’t do that, intentionally put the lead-off man on base, with three, four, five coming up behind. It just makes no sense,” Roberts said.
That was his only interaction with Machado on Sunday night prior to the throw, Roberts said.
The night unspooled from there, eventually requiring a delay after fans threw at least one baseball at Padres outfielder Jurickson Profar and trash onto the field near Tatis in right field. Profar’s troll job of the Dodgers’ fans after robbing a home run in the first set the tone for a Padres romp, igniting tensions on a tension-filled night.
“Clearly that team over there, they like the villain-type kind of role and they feed off of that,” Roberts said. “So whatever gets us going, the motivation is individually, collectively, to win a baseball game, to win a series.”
(Photo of Manny Machado: Rothmuller / Getty Images))